2017 March - Pro Football Rumors

Panthers Sign WR Charles Johnson

March 10th, 2017 at 6:16pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Panthers have cornered the market on NFLers named Charles Johnson. After re-signing the defensive end earlier this week, the team has announced a deal with the wide receiver of the same name. The latter will earn $2.2MM on a one-year pact, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link).

A seventh-round pick of the Packers in 2013, the wideout debuted with the Vikings a year later and posted 31 receptions, 475 yards and two touchdowns on 59 targets as a rookie. He wasn’t able to match that production in either of the previous two seasons in Minnesota, though, and is now coming off a scoreless, 20-catch campaign. Johnson did set career highs in appearances (16) and starts (seven) in 2016, however.

With the additions of Johnson and Russell Shepard, the Panthers have signed two receivers Friday. They’ll join Kelvin Benjamin and Devin Funchess, among others, in a Carolina receiving corps that lost Ted Ginn to the Saints on Thursday.

Jets Sign Chandler Catanzaro

March 10th, 2017 at 6:08pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Jets have announced the signing of free agent kicker Chandler Catanzaro. He’s in line to take over for Nick Folk, whom the Jets released in February.

The 26-year-old Catanzaro spent the first three years of his career in Arizona, where he enjoyed quality 2014 and ’15 campaigns before his performance dropped off in 2016. Catanzaro converted just 75 percent of his 28 field goal attempts last season and missed four of his 47 extra point tries. All told, he hit on a respectable 84.8 percent of 92 field goals as a Cardinal. Catanzaro has also made 96 of 105 PATs since the NFL lengthened the extra point in 2015.

The Jets ranked 31st in special teams DVOA last year, though most of that lackluster production admittedly came in the punting game.

Cowboys To Sign Nolan Carroll

March 10th, 2017 at 6:05pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Cowboys are having a busy hour, as they’ve agreed to a contract with cornerback Nolan Carroll, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. It’s a three-year, $10MM deal that includes $4MM in 2017, per Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link).

After a quiet first day of free agency, Dallas has now signed Carroll, wide receiver Terrance Williams, and defensive lineman Stephen Paea in the last thirty minutes or so. The addition of Carroll could be a sign the Cowboys are bracing to lose either Morris Claiborne, who is reportedly garnering interest from the Ravens, or Brandon Carr, who is also an unrestricted free agent.

Carroll, 30, spent the past three seasons with the Eagles, and was discussing an extension with Philadelphia as of last December. The seven-year veteran started all 16 games for the Birds last season (the first time he’s done so in his career), and managed one interception, 10 passes defensed, and a forced fumble. Pro Football Focus wasn’t very fond of Carroll’s play, however, grading him as the NFL’s No. 92 cornerback among 112 qualifiers.

Carroll will join a Cowboys secondary that ranked 18th in DVOA last season and is currently comprised of Orlando Scandrick, Anthony Brown, and Leon McFadden.

Cowboys To Sign Stephen Paea

March 10th, 2017 at 5:57pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Cowboys have agreed to a one-year deal with free agent defensive tackle Stephen Paea, reports Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link).

Dallas will be the fifth NFL organization for the 28-year-old Paea, who entered the league as a second-round pick in 2011 and has since played with the Bears, Redskins and Browns. Chicago heavily relied on Paea, who started double-digit games in three of his four seasons with the club, but he served as a reserve in Washington and Cleveland over the past two years. Paea started just one game apiece for those teams, and he’s coming off a 13-appearance, 12-tackle campaign. Despite his less-than-gaudy numbers, he ranked as Pro Football Focus’ 40th-best interior D-lineman among 127 qualifiers in 2016.

As a member of the Cowboys, Paea will attempt to replace the departed Terrell McClain, who signed with NFC East rival Washington on Thursday. Paea is slated to join Cedric Thornton and Maliek Collins as the Cowboys’ top interior options.

Cowboys To Re-Sign Terrance Williams

March 10th, 2017 at 5:35pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Cowboys have reached a four-year agreement to re-sign wide receiver Terrance Williams, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN. The pact is worth $17MM, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, while Caplan adds that it carries a max value of $22MM (Twitter links). It contains $9.5MM in guarantees, Todd Archer of ESPN.com writes.

Williams, 27, has spent his entire four-year career with the Cowboys and is now in position to remain in Dallas for the foreseeable future. The team went into free agency bracing for his departure, but it will instead keep the No. 2 wideout and Dez Bryant complement in the fold. Since going in the third round of the 2013 draft, Williams has played in all 64 of the Cowboys’ regular-season games, made 52 starts and averaged 44 catches, 698 yards and five touchdowns per year.

The 6-foot-2, 208-pound Williams is the latest wideout off the board in a class of available receivers that’s quickly losing its appeal. Among PFR’s 15 highest-ranked receivers entering free agency, only Cordarrelle Patterson, Michael Floyd, Kamar Aiken and Victor Cruz remain. All of those players come with obvious flaws, which made it that much more important for the Cowboys to keep the steady Williams from exiting.

Panthers Sign Russell Shepard

March 10th, 2017 at 5:32pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Panthers have signed free agent wide receiver Russell Shepard to a three-year deal, reports David Newton of ESPN.com. Shepard was a popular free agent in this cycle, drawing interest from six teams in total.

The incumbent Buccaneers, Bills, and Lions also worked to sign Shepard this week. Reportedly, some of the teams interested in Shepard believed that he could be a No. 3 receiver, with a chance of being a No. 2 WR. Other clubs reportedly offered to make him “one of the highest-paid special-teams players in the league with multiple offensive packages.”

Shepard showed what he could do on offense last season, recording 23 receptions for 341 yards and two touchdowns. It will be interesting to see how the Panthers use the former Bucs special teams captain.

The Panthers wide receiver depth chart is now headlined by Kelvin Benjamin, Devin Funchess, and Russell Shepard. Brenton Bersin and Damiere Byrd currently project to hold the WR4 and WR5 spots, but lots can change between now and September. Wide receiver Laron Byrd was not retained as restricted free agent and Philly Brown is meeting with other teams.

Jared Cook Won’t Return To Packers

March 10th, 2017 at 5:09pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Free agent tight end Jared Cook won’t return to the Packers for a second season, a source told Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). Cook’s exit from Green Bay won’t please quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who lobbied in January for the team to re-sign the pass catcher. The news isn’t surprising, though, as contract talks between the Packers and Cook broke off earlier Friday.

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 inked a $3.5MM deal in free agency last offseason, but he could land a richer pact this year as one of the two best tight ends available (Martellus Bennett is the other). Buffalo and Detroit were eyeing the 29-year-old on Thursday, though the latter then booked a visit with free agent tight end Daniel Fells.

Ravens, Dennis Pitta Restructure Deal

March 10th, 2017 at 5:01pm CST by Ben Levine

Dennis Pitta will be sticking around Baltimore. NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo tweets that the veteran tight end has restructured his deal with the Ravens. We learned earlier this week that the organization had approached Pitta about taking a pay cut.

Pitta, 32 in June, was set to carry a hefty $5.5MM cap number in 2017. Last offseason, the tight end had restructured his deal, cutting his salary from $5MM to $1MM (he ultimately earned another $3MM in incentives).

The seven-year veteran had the best season of his career in 2016. He set career-highs in receptions (86) and receiving yards (729), and he hauled in a pair of touchdowns. The former fourth-rounder has spent his entire career in Baltimore, playing in 66 career games. Between 2013 and 2015, the veteran only took the field for seven contests.

It’s uncertain if the Ravens would have cut Pitta had they not agreed to an extension. The team is loaded at tight end with a depth chart that also features Ben Watson, Maxx Williams, Crockett Gillmore, Nick Boyle, and Darren Waller.

Redskins Could Consider Williams For GM

March 10th, 2017 at 4:47pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

As they search for their next general manager in the wake of Scot McCloughan‘s firing on Thursday, the Redskins could consider one of their former quarterbacks, Doug Williams, for the role, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Mike Jones of the Washington Post first mentioned Williams as a potential candidate Wednesday.

The 61-year-old Williams’ only work as a GM came back in 2011 with the Virginia Destroyers of the now-defunct United Football League, but he has garnered front office experience at the highest level with the Buccaneers (with whom he played from 1978-82) and Redskins.

Williams has been a personnel executive with Washington since 2014, but he’s best known for his tenure as the franchise’s signal-caller from 1986-89. Even though Williams only started 14 games during that four-year span, he was at the helm for the Redskins’ 42-10 rout of the Broncos in Super Bowl XXII, which capped off the 1987 season. Williams tossed four touchdowns in that game and completed 18 of 29 passes for 340 yards.

If Williams ends up as the Redskins’ GM, his most important decision in the early going will likely center on their current starting quarterback, the franchise-tagged Kirk Cousins, who could be entering his last season with the franchise. Before he helps map out Cousins’ future, though, Williams will have to beat out other general manager candidates like NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock and ex-Buccaneers GM Mark Dominik, among other possibilities.

Chiefs Eyeing Daniel Sorensen Extension

March 10th, 2017 at 4:37pm CST by Ben Levine

The Chiefs are working on an extension with safety Daniel Sorensen, reports Tom Pelissero of USA Today (via Twitter). The organization applied a second-round tender to the player earlier this week.

Even without an extension, Sorensen’s will see a pay jump from $600K to $2.74MM. The four-year veteran served as a sub-package player for the Chiefs. In 16 games (one start), the 27-year-old set career-highs in tackles (47), sacks (one), forced fumbles (two), and interceptions (three). He joined the starters on passing downs, helping the Chiefs’ young cornerback corps match up against offenses’ receiving sets.

Sorensen will presumably play a similar role next season. Along with Eric Murray, he’ll be a primary backup to Ron Parker and Eric Berry.