Trent Murphy Facing Four-Game Ban
Redskins outside linebacker Trent Murphy could have a delayed start to his 2017 season. The fourth-year edge defender is facing a four-game ban for the use of performance-enhancing substances, Master Tefatsion of the Washington Post reports. Murphy has appealed the suspension, per Tefatsion.
Murphy operated as a valuable off-the-bench rotational presence for the Redskins in 2016, playing behind Ryan Kerrigan and Preston Smith. This suspension standing and depriving Murphy of his September slate would be a rough start to what stands to be his contract year. Washington acquired the pass-rusher in the second round of the 2014 draft.
Since, Murphy has started 23 games, with his primary audition season occurring in 2015. Murphy started 15 games for the NFC East champions that season, vaulting into the lineup after Junior Galette suffered the first of his summer season-ending injuries. However, as a bench presence, Murphy shined, registering nine sacks last season. Only Kerrigan’s 11 outpaced that total. Going into 2016, Murphy had just six career sacks.
He did so after initially gaining weight to move to defensive end, but when Galette tore his Achilles’ tendon for a second time in two years, Washington moved Murphy back to outside linebacker. After shedding the excess weight, he became one of Washington’s best pass-rushers. Now, the team could have issues at outside ‘backer, given Galette’s injury history and this prospective suspension.
5 Key Stories: 2/26/17 – 3/5/17
AFC standouts receive record paydays: Two players that angled for extensions for a while signed them this week, and the contracts are now the standard at their respective positions. Antonio Brown finally signed the Steelers pact the team delayed until he had one year remaining on his previous deal, and Eric Berry reached an agreement with the Chiefs on the day before the franchise tag deadline. Berry was adamant about not wanting to be tagged again. This is the eighth-year player’s second Chiefs long-term deal. Also an eighth-year performer, Brown signed his third Steelers pact. Brown raises the per-year wide receiver bar to $17MM AAV, while Berry’s deal surpasses Tyrann Mathieu‘s in total and per-year money; the league’s new highest-paid safety will earn $13MM annually.
Pro Bowlers, potential Hall of Famers axed: The long-rumored Adrian Peterson/Vikings divorce occurred this week when Minnesota passed on the Canton-bound running back’s 2017 option. The Chiefs parted with ninth-year running back Jamaal Charles. Amid a major house-cleaning effort, the Jets will separate from Darrelle Revis for a second time. They also became the fourth team to part with Brandon Marshall. The former Broncos, Dolphins and Bears wide receiver will leave a team via release for the first time after being traded in 2010, 2012 and 2015. The 33-year-old wideout declined a Jets extension offer and requested a release. Peterson’s been linked to the Giants and Raiders in free agency, although the latest coming out of New York/New Jersey is Big Blue will pass on him. Charles could have interest from former Kansas City OC Doug Pederson in Philadelphia, and Marshall has been linked to a few teams, including the Patriots.
Cooks trade market ignites: The Saints may be dangling Brandin Cooks in trades. The league certainly seems to be operating on the assumption the two-time 1,100-yard wideout is available. After interest emerged from the Eagles and Titans, the Patriots are believed to have offered a package including their 2017 No. 32 overall pick for a receiver they’ve admired for years. New Orleans, though, wants a “real significant” return for the 23-year-old target who could be under team control for two more seasons. Saints management is said to be targeting a mid-first-round pick. Several teams have offered second-rounders. The Eagles attempted to trade for Cooks at the 2016 deadline.
Tags change pass-rusher market: While players at other positions received franchise tag designations — Kirk Cousins (Redskins), Le’Veon Bell (Steelers) and Trumaine Johnson (Rams) — the tag fail-safe measure mostly affected the pass-rushing market. As expected, the Cardinals and Panthers respectively tagged Chandler Jones and Kawann Short. But the Giants and Chargers both opted to prevent sack artists Jason Pierre-Paul and Melvin Ingram from reaching free agency. The edge defender market looks drastically different as a result. Pittsburgh and Washington, though, protected their offensive assets the most, being the only two franchises to deploy the exclusive tag this year.
Salary cap makes record leap: After months of rumors pegging the 2017 cap between $163-$170MM, the number teams will use this year was revealed this week. As free agency approaches, teams will be working off a $167MM salary ceiling. Moving from $155MM to $167MM makes this the largest single-year leap since the cap was implemented in 1994. That continues the substantial elevation pattern that’s formed over the past several years. In 2013, the cap settled in at $123MM, and that came after it stagnated following the uncapped year of 2010. The Browns now have more than $102MM in cap space to lead the league going into free agency.
Cardinals Expected To Lose Calais Campbell, Tony Jefferson
Two key members of the Cardinals’ defense during the franchise’s mid-2010s resurgence, Calais Campbell and Tony Jefferson are expected to move on from the team in free agency. At the prices the duo is expected to command, the Cardinals are likely going to thank both for their service and allow them to seek better offers on the UFA market, Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic reports.
Both’s per-year price could creep into eight-figure territory. Now that Eric Berry is off the market, Jefferson is expected to be the top safety pursued. Campbell tops the interior defender contingent despite being 30. Somers hears Jefferson could command close to $10MM per year. Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com agrees, noting that he’d be surprised based on what he’s heard at the Combine if Jefferson’s price was too far off that figure.
Only four safeties — Berry, Tyrann Mathieu, Harrison Smith and Earl Thomas — earn $10MM per year, while only five earn at least $9MM annually.
As for Campbell, Somers hears the defensive end will command more annually. Although he’s set to turn 31 and coming off a five-year deal, Campbell is entering free agency off of arguably his best year and will be an attractive commodity for both 3-4 and 4-3 teams looking to bolster their pass rush. Somers expects the 6-foot-8 talent to sign for more than the $11MM-per-year figure he did to stay in Arizona earlier this decade.
Instead, the Cardinals are planning to set their sights on more reasonable UFAs to retain, with Somers mentioning D.J. Swearinger and Jermaine Gresham fall into this category. A source informed Somers that the Cards making a push to re-sign Swearinger makes sense with Jefferson on his way out.
The Cardinals already authorized top-market deals for Mathieu and Patrick Peterson, so it’s natural that Jefferson would have to seek his second contract elsewhere. Arizona does not have big expenses on its defensive line but is expected to discuss a long-term deal with the recently franchise-tagged Chandler Jones in the coming months. Jones being nearly four years younger than Campbell made him a logical choice in this debate. Campbell ranked first among 3-4 defensive ends in the opinion of Pro Football Focus last season. Arizona holds just more than $17MM in cap space.
He and Jefferson rank at Nos. 6 and 8, respectively, on PFR’s top 50 free agents list.
PFR Originals: 2/26/17 – 3/5/17
The original content and analysis produced by the PFR staff during the past week:
- Free agency officially opens on Thursday, and PFR’s Zach Links unveiled his first top 50 free agents list for the 2017 class, removing players given the franchise tag designation. With the cap rising to $167MM, it’s going to cost more than usual to procure top guards this year. And a player who would have flown well under the radar a year ago resides at No. 1.
- Zach also examined which franchise tag candidates received that distinction and which standouts will be entering free agency. More than one player received the exclusive tag this season, with Le’Veon Bell and Kirk Cousins begin given that designation.
- PFR’s The Beat series continued when Zach caught up with the Detroit News’ Justin Rogers to discuss the Lions’ status going into free agency.
- As the offseason progresses, PFR will assess each team by examining the top three needs on each respective roster. We covered three organizations last week:
Browns “Blown Away” By Myles Garrett’s Combine
The Browns have understandably eyed Myles Garrett for a while, but now that the Texas A&M-honed pass-rusher showcased some of his skills at the Combine, the team is moving closer to making him the No. 1 overall pick. Browns personnel were “blown away” by Garrett’s Sunday showing, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com reports, adding that Garrett impressed the team with his interview as well.
Cabot reports the Browns are close to making Garrett the choice atop the draft, this coming after Mitch Trubisky appeared to re-enter the race for Cleveland’s top pick. Trubisky is a Cleveland-area native and plays the position the Browns obviously need most, but Cabot notes the Browns “probably won’t” be able to pass on the draft’s consensus top player.
Garrett weighed 272 pounds and ran a 4.64-second 40-yard dash, which is the fifth-best mark ever for a defensive lineman weighing at least 270 pounds. The former Aggie coupled that with 33 bench press repetitions. Although dealing with a shoulder issue, Alabama defensive tackle Jonathan Allen — another player whom the Browns are considering at No. 1 — repped 225 pounds 21 times. Garrett’s 41-inch vertical jump was the highest for a 270-pound D-lineman since Mario Williams in 2006.
Cabot adds that new Browns DC Gregg Williams “loves” Garrett, with a source comparing him to former Williams protege, Jevon Kearse.
“They’re both freaks,” the source told Cabot. “And Kearse changed the Titans’ franchise.”
Deshaun Watson is the fourth player the Browns are considering with the No. 1 overall pick, per Cabot, but the buzz Garrett generated on Sunday looks to have clearly put him in the lead here.
Latest On QB Market
There are a lot of moving pieces in this year’s quarterback market, and the Patriots’ Jimmy Garoppolo, despite recent reports suggesting he would not be traded, remains the forefront of the discussion. Per Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald, New England is willing to deal Garoppolo, but the team has not yet received an offer approaching its asking price for Tom Brady‘s top backup. Howe writes that the current asking price is believed to be a first- and second-round draft pick, but the Patriots will not simply flip Garoppolo to the highest bidder. If the team is not “properly compensated,” they will not make a deal.
Meanwhile, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes that the Bills are not expected to retain Tyrod Taylor under his current contract (we heard several days ago that Buffalo was leaning against keeping Taylor, though there is a split among the club’s top decision-makers in that regard). Assuming Taylor does hit the open market, La Canfora expects the Browns to emerge as the front-runner for his services. Indeed, Taylor has strong ties to some members of the Browns staff already, and if Cleveland is able to acquire him, the club could use its two first-round selections on the best player available and would not have to reach for a quarterback or deal one (or both) picks for Garoppolo.
La Canfora also reports that the Bears have the strongest interest in Mike Glennon at the moment, and sources around the league believe Chicago will push hard to acquire him. The Bears also love Garoppolo, but they do not want to meet the Patriots’ asking price (all of that is consistent with reports that our Sam Robinson passed along last night). La Canfora projects Glennon, who turned down an $8MM/year offer from Tampa Bay, to receive an incentive-laden contract with an AAV of around $12MM.
Interestingly, Glennon has no official agent at this point, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes. That’s significant because when the “legal tampering” period opens on Tuesday, teams can negotiate with agents representing free agents, but not with the free agents directly. Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets that teams with interest in Glennon are working under the assumption that David Dunn is his agent.
East Notes: Cowboys, Jets, Marshall
The Cowboys are working on contract extensions for offensive coordinator Scott Linehan and defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli, Jon Machota of The Dallas Morning News reports. Both men are under contract through the 2017 season, having signed three-year deals in January 2015. Linehan has served as the Cowboys’ OC since 2014, while Marinelli worked as the team’s D-line coach in 2013 before being promoted to DC in 2014.
Team owner Jerry Jones said he is not ready to announce any extensions just yet, but that all talks thus far have been positive.
Now for more from the league’s east divisions:
- We learned several days ago that the Cowboys are proceeding as if LB Jaylon Smith will play in 2017, although there has been no significant change in the nerve damage that caused Smith’s draft stock to plummet last year and that forced him to miss the entire 2016 campaign. As Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes, Dallas not only expects Smith to play this year, the team expects him to be a full participant in offseason workouts. Jones, as per usual, is especially bullish on Smith’s chances of being an impact player this year.
- The Jets have clearly entered into full-on rebuilding mode, and as Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com writes, the club is willing to deal its No. 6 overall selection to acquire more picks. Per Bergman, if the Jets do not want to use their top pick on a quarterback or offensive lineman, they will be comfortable trading down to the mid-to-late first round and collecting mid-round selections in the process.
- The Eagles‘ desire for wide receiver and cornerback help has been well-documented, but Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer believes the team would also be well-served in pursuing a pass-rushing defensive end in the early rounds of the draft, especially since this year’s draft class is well-stocked with quality pass rushers. After all, the Eagles are expected to trade or release Connor Barwin, which would leave the team with two 29-year-olds (Vinny Curry and Brandon Graham) rushing the edge and little proven depth behind them.
- Rich Cimini of ESPN.com names the Giants, Patriots, and Ravens as three potential landing spots for the recently-released Brandon Marshall (Twitter link). We learned about the mutual interest between New England and Marshall yesterday.
- The Dolphins plan to lean more heavily on 2015 second-rounder Jordan Phillips next season, and they hope Phillips will seize a starting role opposite Ndamukong Suh, as James Walker of ESPN.com writes.
FA Rumors: Pats, Jefferson, Jags, Falcons
Free agency officially opens on March 9, so let’s round up a few FA-related notes and rumors from around the league:
- Although it is difficult, as usual, to pin down the Patriots‘ free agency plans, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe does his best, writing that the club is “taking a long look” at the tight end position but that Martellus Bennett could certainly be back, that the team is in the defensive end market now that Chris Long is gone and Jabaal Sheard appears unlikely to return, and that Logan Ryan is likely to price himself out of the Patriots’ price range. Volin names the Jaguars and Raiders as two teams with serious interest in Bennett.
- Speaking of the Jaguars, the club is expected to let Tyson Alualu hit the open market, as Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union writes.
- In a separate piece, O’Halloran lists the Jaguars‘ most pressing needs in free agency and examines how they could address those needs with an aggressive approach or with a more disciplined approach. He predicts that the Jags will land this year’s top FA cornerback, A.J. Bouye, if Bouye does not re-sign with Houston.
- Jason Cole of Bleacher Report, citing an agent who represents a FA safety, says that the Cardinals‘ Tony Jefferson can expect to land a contract that will pay him $7MM per year (Twitter link). Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, though, tweets that Jefferson is likely to get paid closer to $10MM per year.
- D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that the Falcons, who are moving towards an extension for Desmond Trufant, want to re-sign tight end Levine Toilolo, safety/linebacker Kemal Ishmael, and fullback Patrick DiMarco before free agency opens. The team is expected to let Jacob Tamme hit free agency and to wait until after the draft to make a decision on Dwight Freeney. Atlanta is also waiting to hear back from guard Chris Chester, who is contemplating retirement.
- The Falcons plan to upgrade their defensive front in free agency and the draft, as Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com writes. The club is expected to re-sign Courtney Upshaw, and McClure names Cowboys’ DT Terrell McClain as one potential target for Atlanta.
- Mike Klis of 9News.com writes that the Broncos are seeking help on both the offensive and defensive line in free agency, but he observes that the club may be operating with two budgets: one that includes Tony Romo, and one that doesn’t. Even if Denver does not land the long-time Cowboys signal-caller, Klis says the Broncos will have to manage the cap creatively, as they have a number of housekeeping moves to make that will eat into their $35MM of cap room, and offensive and defensive linemen do not come cheap on the open market.
Falcons, Desmond Trufant Moving Towards Deal
Negotiations between the Falcons and top cornerback Desmond Trufant are “heating up,” according to D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta GM Thomas Dimitroff said last week that locking up Trufant was going to be the club’s next major move, and it appears as if he is making good on his word.
Trufant, the 22nd-overall pick of the 2013 draft, quickly established himself as the Falcons’ best cover corner and was named to his first Pro Bowl in 2015. He picked up right where he left off in 2016, but he suffered a torn pectoral in Week 9 and missed the rest of the season, which was a major blow to a pass defense that struggled even with Trufant in the lineup. At the time of the injury, Trufant ranked as the 32nd-best corner in the NFL out of 119 qualified players, according to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics, and he had picked up an interception and two sacks. For his career, he has seven interceptions and three sacks.
He had also been highly durable before the injury, having started every game from Week 1 of his rookie season to Week 9 of 2016 (a total of 57 contests). He is already under contract for 2017, as the Falcons picked up his fifth-year option, but the team obviously wants to keep him in Atlanta for the foreseeable future.
Of course, Trufant will not come cheap. The market for top cornerbacks seems to increase dramatically with each passing year, and Trufant can use recent deals for Darius Slay (five years, $51.33MM) and Janoris Jenkins (five years, $62.5MM) as benchmarks.
Per Ledbetter, Dimitroff and head coach Dan Quinn met with Trufant’s agents until midnight last night. The club is also trying to resign safety Kemal Ishmael, tight end Levine Toilolo, and fullback Patrick DiMarco.
“Not Much Progress” Between Packers, Jared Cook
We heard at the end of January that the Packers would make re-signing tight end Jared Cook a priority, and just yesterday we learned that Green Bay contract negotiator Russ Ball met with Cook’s agent (along with the agents for some of the club’s other top UFAs). But as Jason Cole of Bleacher Report tweets, although the two sides are talking, there has not been much progress towards a new deal.
Indeed, Cole makes it sound as if the Packers are low-balling Cook, as he writes that Green Bay is being “frugal” at the moment. Cook signed a modest one-year, $2.75MM contract with the Packers last offseason, which was quite a step back from the five-year, $35.1MM deal he signed with the Rams back in 2013. But while his first year in Green Bay was partially derailed by an ankle injury, he really turned it on during the Packers’ playoff run, piling up 13 receptions for 181 yards and two scores in two games. He finished the regular season with 30 catches (on 51 targets), 377 yards, and a touchdown.
His postseason explosion, though, figures to get him a multi-year pact, as he demonstrated the ability that led to his early-career success with the Titans and that convinced the Rams to hand him a lucrative free agent contract. PFR ranks Cook as the second-best tight end eligible for free agency, right behind the Patriots’ Martellus Bennett.
Spotrac.com believes Cook is worth a four-year deal, $13.77MM deal. But he may have more value than that for the Packers, who know just how deadly Aaron Rodgers can be with a talented tight end at his disposal.