2017 March - Pro Football Rumors

Percy Harvin To Retire

March 14th, 2017 at 6:50pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Wide receiver Percy Harvin is retiring from the NFL and won’t be coming back this time around, a representative tells Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Harvin previously announced his retirement in April 2016 only to re-sign with the Bills last November.

Shortly after signing with Buffalo, Harvin indicated he’d like to continue playing in 2017, as well. But chronic migraine issues forced the Bills to shut Harvin down after he’d spent less than a month with the club. Harvin, 28, dealt with those same migraine issues throughout his throughout his career, and missed time due to the ailment with the Vikings.

Harvin, a former first-round pick, battled various other injuries throughout his career, but still managed to produce as an effective offensive weapon, especially while playing for Minnesota. His best season came in 2011, when he posted 87 receptions for 967 yards and six touchdowns, while adding another 345 yards and two scores on the ground.

Traded to the Seahawks prior to the 2013 season, Harvin ultimately played in only six contests for Seattle before being dealt once again, this time to the Jets. Harvin struggled through a half-season with Gang Green before finishing his career in Buffalo, where he never truly got off the ground.

PFR wishes Harvin all the best in in his post-NFL career.

Three Teams Inquired On Kirk Cousins Trade

March 14th, 2017 at 6:34pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Three clubs have approached the Redskins about a Kirk Cousins trade within the past two weeks, but all three teams’ inquiries were declined, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. The Browns were not one of the clubs that asked about Cousins despite rumors a Washington/Cleveland Cousins deal could occur.

While Cabot doesn’t identify any of the trio of teams that did call on Cousins’ availability, it’s fair to speculate the 49ers were among the group. San Francisco has been linked to Cousins since the moment Kyle Shanahan was named the club’s next head coach, as the two enjoyed an excellent relationship while Shanahan was the Redskins’ offensive coordinator.

In theory, a team like the Browns or 49ers could roll the dice and trade for Cousins without an agreement for a multi-year deal in place. The two sides would then still have several months to hammer out a contract before the July 15th deadline. If that’s unsuccessful, they would have him for $23.94MM in 2017 with the option of tagging him again for $28MM+ in 2018.

Bengals To Sign Andre Smith

March 14th, 2017 at 6:18pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Bengals will reunite with Andre Smith, as they’ve agreed to sign the free agent tackle, according to Jeff Darlington of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Smith will ink a one-year deal, tweets Mike Garafolo of NFL.com.

Smith, 30, spent the first seven seasons of his career with Cincinnati after being selected sixth overall in the 2009 draft. While he didn’t become a full-time player until his third year in the league, Smith ultimately started 73 games for the Bengals at right tackle. After inking a one-year pact with the Vikings last offseason, Smith played in only four contests before being placed on injured reserve.

The Bengals’ offensive line is in flux after the club saw both Andrew Whitworth and Kevin Zeitler leave the club in free agency. With Cedric Ogbuehi projected to take over for Whitworth at left tackle, Smith could theoretically slide in at right tackle, allowing Jake Fisher to shift to guard to replace Zeitler. Instead, initial indications are Smith will play right guard, a position he’s never played at the NFL level, as Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com writes.

The Bills also made a “hard run” at Smith, per Darlington (Twitter link), but Smith preferred to head back to Cincinnati.

Eagles Open To Trading Wide Receiver

March 14th, 2017 at 6:07pm CST by Dallas Robinson

After signing free agent wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith to one-year deals, the Eagles are now open to trading one of their recently-drafted pass-catchers, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. While La Canfora doesn’t name the specific wideouts Philadelphia is willing to move, Jordan Matthews and Nelson Agholor are the only receivers on the club’s roster who were originally drafted by the Eagles.

Matthews, selected in the second round of the 2014 draft, has offered steady production from the slot during his three-year tenure with the Eagles, but he doesn’t offer the type of No. 1 receiver production that his size (6’3″, 212 pounds) would seem to indicate. In 2016, Matthews posted 73 receptions for 804 yards and three touchdowns. While his scoring was down, Matthews more or less matched his career averages last year.

Now entering his age-25 season, Matthews has one year on his rookie contract, which comes with a base salary slightly north of $1MM. Earlier this month, Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports reported the Eagles may be wiling to deal Matthews if the right offer came about. Matthews was selected while Philadelphia still employed former head coach Chip Kelly, so de facto general manager Howie Roseman might not feel attached to the fourth-year pro.

Agholor, meanwhile, was drafted after Kelly had assumed control of the Eagles’ personnel office, meaning Roseman has even less reason to keep Agholor around. Agholor, 23, has posted extremely disappointed results during his first two years in the NFL, as he’s averaged just 30 catches, 374 yards, and two touchdowns from 2015-16. The 20th overall pick in the 2015 draft, Agholor is due fully guaranteed base salaries totaling ~$2.4MM over the next two seasons.

The Eagles are also reportedly open to dealing center Jason Kelce, guard Allen Barbre, and linebacker Mychal Kendricks.

Raiders To Host Jared Cook

March 14th, 2017 at 5:52pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Assuming he doesn’t sign after meeting with the Vikings, free agent tight end Jared Cook will take a visit with the Raiders, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

Oakland hasn’t been linked to Cook thus far in the free agent period, but the club was reportedly interested in fellow tight end Martellus Bennett, who has since taken Cook’s place in Green Bay. Clearly, the Raiders are attempting to upgrade their tight end group, which currently includes Clive Walford, Lee Smith, and Gabe Holmes. Mychal Rivera, who appeared in 13 games for Oakland last year, is an unrestricted free agent.

In what will go down as his only year with the Packers, Cook appeared in 10 games in 2016 and caught 30 of 51 targets for 377 yards and a touchdown. 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. Previously, Cook spent 2009-15 with the Titans and Rams and totaled 273 catches and 16 touchdowns.

Cook, who is now the top free agent tight end on the market, has also drawn interest from the Seahawks, Bills, and Lions, and had discussions about re-signing with the Packers before they brought in Bennett and Lance Kendricks.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/14/17

March 14th, 2017 at 5:34pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s minor moves:

After originally non-tendering him as a restricted free agent, the Packers have re-signed linebacker Jayrone Elliott to a one-year, $1.6MM deal, according to Peter Schrager of FOX Sports (Twitter link) and Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. The original round tender is worth $1.797MM, so Green Bay will retain Elliott — who played on 40% of the club’s special teams snaps in 2016 — at a slightly cheaper rate. Before re-signing with the Packers, Elliott took free agent visits with the Bills and Steelers.
The Panthers announced that they’ve re-signed reserve offensive lineman Chris Scott to a one-year pact. Scott, 29, has appeared in 43 games during his four-year run in Carolina, and started four contests last season. In sum, he played on roughly a quarter of the Panthers’ offensive snaps in 2016, and chipped in with 64 special teams plays. Scott has agreed to minimum salary benefit contracts in the past several seasons, and likely inked a similar deal for the 2017 campaign.
The Browns announced they’ve claimed wide receiver James Wright, whom Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link) yesterday reported had been waived by the Bengals. Wright, a former seventh-round draft pick, is entering the final season of his rookie deal. Afflicted by a nagging knee injury, Wright managed to appear in only 24 games with the Bengals, primarily serving as a special teams player during that span. The 25-year-old will now reunite with former Cincinnati offensive coordinator Hue Jackson in Cleveland.
The Seahawks announced that they’ve re-signed defensive back Neiko Thorpe, whom the club originally acquired from Oakland last offseason. While Thorpe didn’t play much on defense (just 97 snaps), he did see a good deal of time on special teams, where he managed over half the club’s plays.
The Buccaneers have a new long snapper, as they’ve agreed to sign Garrison Sanborn to one-year deal after working him out today, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. Sanborn, 31, had appeared in 128 games for the Bills from 2009-16, but was released last week. Tampa Bay, meanwhile, recently non-tendered restricted free agent long snapper Andrew DePaola, who is recovering from an ACL tear.
The Rams have signed long snapper Andrew East, per Field Yates of ESPN.com. East, 25, went undrafted in 2015 and has since spent time with Oakland, Seattle, and Kansas City. As Yates notes, Los Angeles already has a Pro Bowl long snapper in Jake McQuaide, so East will merely be an emergency option.
The Chargers have waived linebacker Brock Hekking, tweets Yates. Hekking joined the Chargers as an undrafted free agent out of Nevada in 2015, but has yet to appear in an NFL game.
The Ravens have withdrawn their restricted free agent tenders to cornerback Jumal Rolle and safety Marqueston Huff, reports Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Both players were tendered at the original round level ($1.797MM), but those tenders are non-guaranteed. As such, Rolle and Huff are now unrestricted free agents, and Baltimore has cleared about $3.6MM in cap room.

Latest On Eddie Lacy’s Weight

March 14th, 2017 at 5:16pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Running back Eddie Lacy took three free agent visits in the past week, and one of the Seahawks, Vikings, and Packers weighed him at 267 pounds, tweets Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, who notes Lacy was listed at 234 pounds last year.

Lacy, who agreed to a one-year, $5.5MM deal with Seattle earlier today, has dealt with weight issues in the past, but he still ranked as PFR’s top running back heading into free agency. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll told reporters, including Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com (all Twitter links), that Lacy’s target weight will be in the 240s, and noted the club would make a “concerted effort” to help their new signee stay in shape.

Lacy, 26, was averaging 5.1 yards per carry in 2016 before an ankle injury sidelined him after only five games. In the three years prior, the former second-round pick averaged 4.3 yards per attempt while scoring 23 total touchdowns. In Seattle, Lacy will compete with Thomas Rawls, C.J. Prosise, and others for carries.

Cardinals Sign Jarvis Jones

March 14th, 2017 at 5:06pm CST by Zachary Links

The Cardinals have signed linebacker Jarvis Jones to a one-year deal, the club announced today. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported earlier today (Twitter link) that Jones was expected to sign with Arizona.

Jones joins the Cardinals hours after the team lost outside linebacker Alex Okafor to the Saints. Having already seen veteran defender Calais Campbell sign with the Jaguars, Arizona is now seeking to rebuild an edge rush that ranked third in adjusted sack rate in 2016. Chandler Jones (no relation to Jarvis) has already been extended on a hefty contract, and now Jarvis Jones will add another element to the pass rush.

Selected 13th overall in 2013, Jones has only posted six sacks in four NFL seasons. He recorded a career-high 43 tackles in 2016, however, and started nine games for the Steelers, playing on slightly less than half of the club’s defensive snaps. While he’s not a pure pass rusher, Jones is still a solid run defender, and graded as Pro Football Focus‘ No. 49 edge player last year in large part due to his stoutness against opposing rushing attacks.

The Rams were hoping to meet with Jones, but Arizona did not let him leave without a deal. The Rams were said to be “very intrigued” by the fifth-year pass-rusher.

Latest On Steelers, Dont’a Hightower

March 14th, 2017 at 4:39pm CST by Zachary Links

The Steelers have made an offer to free agent linebacker Dont’a Hightower, according to Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com (on Twitter). However, they don’t want Hightower to use their proposal for leverage with the Patriots. He has been told that if he gets on the plane to leave Pittsburgh without agreeing to terms, the offer will be off the table.

Hightower has been making the free agent rounds, but it certainly sounds like his goal is to return to the Patriots. After Hightower spoke with the Jets and Titans, both teams were skeptical about his willingness to actually leave New England, though the Jets still sound quite interested. The Jets may be willing to drive up the price on the rival Patriots, but the Steelers want no part of that game. They’ve made their offer to Hightower and if he does not quickly accept, they’ll redirect that cap space in another direction.

Adding a superstar like Hightower would certainly lessen the blow of Lawrence Timmons leaving for the Dolphins. Soon, we should know whether Hightower will shock everyone and join up with Pittsburgh.

Vikings Sign Datone Jones

March 14th, 2017 at 4:28pm CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings announced that they have signed defensive end/linebacker Datone Jones. Jones’ deal with the Vikings is a one-year, $3.75MM pact, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. He can make up to $5MM through incentives.

Jones, 26, spent the 2016 campaign playing outside linebacker in Green Bay’s 3-4 front after playing the early part of his career as a defensive end. The Vikings run a 4-3 scheme, so he might be in store for a return to end. Through four seasons with Green Bay, the former first-round pick appeared in 59 games but only started in seven games.

Last year, Jones recorded one sack and 22 tackles on 548 defensive snaps, making him the league’s No. 61 edge defender among 109 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus. PFR ranked Jones as the ninth-best free agent edge defender heading into the offseason.

The Vikings are projected to start Everson Griffen and Brian Robison at defensive end. They also have Danielle Hunter, Tom Johnson, and Stephen Weatherly under contract as reserves. The linebacker group, meanwhile, is looking thin with just five players under contract.