2017 May - Pro Football Rumors

Details On Eddie Lacy’s Seahawks Contract

May 17th, 2017 at 10:44am CST by Zachary Links

The weight-oriented clauses in Eddie Lacy‘s contract have been discussed at great length, but the running back’s one-year pact with the Seahawks includes many other bonuses tied to his performance. Thanks to Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com, we now have a more complete breakdown of his deal.

Lacy’s deal includes roughly $2.865MM guaranteed with a max value of $5.55MM, meaning that there’s $2.685MM available via incentives. Approximately $400K of that additional money is tied to Lacy’s monthly weigh-ins, but he can make more if he delivers on the field. If he reaches certain yardage plateaus, he’ll come closer to achieving the full potential value of the deal.

If Lacy runs for at least 800 yards, he’ll cash in on an additional $250K. If he reaches 900 yards, he’ll get $500K. For a 1,000-yard season, Lacy receives $750K. At 1,100 yards, the number jumps to $1MM. And if Lacy rushes for 1,200+ yards, he’ll net an extra $1.3MM. These bonuses do not accumulate, so he can only collect at the highest plateau. For what it’s worth, Lacy has twice eclipsed 1,100 yards but he has never quite reached 1,200. His last 1,100+ plus season game in 2014.

Lacy can also cash in by staying on the field. The 26-year-old will earn $62,500 for each week he’s on the 46-man active roster, meaning that he’ll get an extra $1MM if he plays a full 16-game season.

Photo via Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.

Vince Wilfork Unsure About Retirement

May 17th, 2017 at 10:27am CST by Zachary Links

After the Patriots knocked Vince Wilfork‘s Texans out of the playoffs, the defensive tackle indicated that he was likely done with football. Four months later, Wilfork has yet to make his retirement official. That’s because the veteran is still on the fence about whether he wants to continue playing.

“Right now I am not retired,” Wilfork told SiriusXM (on Twitter). “I’m not saying I’m retired. It’s something I want to make sure I’m 100% certain about.”

To date, Wilfork has put in 13 years in the NFL and he can probably leave the game without any regrets if this is in fact the end of the line. The 35-year-old has two Super Bowl rings thanks to his 11-year stint with the Patriots and he was one of the best interior defensive linemen in the game during his prime. Although he had only 16 career sacks, the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus show that he was among the game’s elite between 2006 and 2012. Once he’s eligible, it seems likely that Wilfork will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

With all of that said, it’s not clear what Wilfork can offer in 2017. Last year, he ranked 84th amongst PFF’s 127 qualified defensive tackles. It’s not clear if the Texans or Patriots would have a place for Wilfork, so continuing his career might mean joining up with a third squad.

Eagles Likely To Cut RB Ryan Mathews

May 17th, 2017 at 10:18am CST by Zachary Links

The Eagles have signed running back LeGarrette Blount and the expectation is that they will release Ryan Mathews as a result, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. However, he adds that the Eagles will wait until Mathews is healthy before releasing him.

As noted by former NFL executive Michael Lombardi (on Twitter), cutting Mathews before he is healthy would leave the Eagles on the hook for injury protection. Per the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Philly would have to pay out an extra $1.15MM, leaving them with a $2.15MM cap charge when factoring in the dead money on his deal. By waiting until he’s back to full health, however, the Eagles will be left with just $1MM on the cap while saving $4MM.

Mathews‘ 2016 season ended in December of last year when he suffered a herniated disc in his neck. Still, even with that injury plus the MCL sprain he was dealing with, he still turned in an alright season. In 13 games played he had 661 yards off of 155 carries for an average of 4.3 yards per attempt. He also had eight rushing touchdowns plus 13 catches for 115 yards.

With Mathews out of the picture, the Eagles will likely have Blount and Darren Sproles split the majority of carries. Wendell Smallwood and fourth-round pick Donnel Pumphrey figure to make the cut while 2016 UDFA Byron Marshall might be on the fringe.

Eagles Sign LeGarrette Blount

May 17th, 2017 at 9:32am CST by Zachary Links

The Eagles have signed running back LeGarrette Blount, according to a team announcement. It’s a one-year deal with a maximum value of $2.8MM, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The pact calls for $1.25MM in base pay with up to $1.55MM in incentives, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets.

Last week, the Patriots used a May 9 tender on free agent running back, a little-known clause that could now impact the 2018 compensatory pick formula for the Eagles and Pats. However, it was said that teams with interest in Blount were looking into ways to circumvent the formula, so it’s possible that the Eagles will not give up much in that area.

The last compensatory pick is currently tied to a $2.05MM annual salary, so the Eagles will only sacrifice a 2018 comp selection if Blount earns more than that total. With $1.55MM of Blount’s deal is tied to performance, the Eagles could come away from this deal without hurting next year’s draft.

The Giants and Lions were known to have interest in Blount for a while, but the Eagles swooped in to sign the power back. As we explained earlier this month, the Eagles were a logical landing spot for Blount since Ryan Mathews could be let go this summer. Indeed, on Wednesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported that Mathews is expected to be released once he’s fully healthy. By cutting him, the Eagles will save $4MM in 2017 while carrying just $1MM in dead money. With Mathews gone, Blount and Darren Sproles will get most of the carries while Wendell Smallwood assumes the role of No. 3 RB.

The seven-year veteran is coming off one of the most productive seasons of his career, having amassed career highs in carries (299), yards (1,161) and touchdowns (an NFL-leading 18). Still, the Patriots would only go so far to re-sign Blount this offseason. They’re losing the bruising back, but they now have an impressive bunch at RB with offseason additions Mike Gillislee and Rex Burkhead joining holdovers James White, Dion Lewis, Brandon Bolden, and D.J. Foster.

The Cardinals and Giants both made offers to Blount before he signed with Philly, according to Rapoport.

Photo via Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.

Vikings Sign Former Bears DT Will Sutton

May 17th, 2017 at 9:02am CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings signed defensive tackle Will Sutton, per a team announcement. Sutton was cut by the rival Bears last week.

Sutton, 25, was selected in the third round by Chicago in the 2014 draft. In the last three years, he started in half of his games and the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus indicate that he had his best season to date in 2016. Still, GM Ryan Pace wasn’t terribly interested in keeping this holdover from the previous regime, as evidenced by his effort to trade him before last year’s season opener.

In his eight games last year (six starts), Sutton had only 15 total tackles but he earned a decent 74.8 overall score from PFF. His 174 snaps weren’t enough to qualify to be ranked, but if he had a larger sample, he would have been ranked as the 44th best interior defender in the league, ahead of notables like Ricky Jean-Francois, Corey Peters, and Cullen Jenkins.

The Vikings project to start Linval Joseph and Sharrif Floyd at the defensive tackle spots in a 4-3 scheme. If Sutton sticks, he could be one of the first DTs off of the bench along with fourth-round rookie Jaleel Johnson.

NFL Likely To Allow For Second IR-DTR Spot

May 17th, 2017 at 8:48am CST by Zachary Links

At a league meeting next week, NFL owners will vote on proposal to allow for a second player to come off of the injured reserve during the season. That proposal is likely to be approved, Judy Battista of NFL.com tweets.

The league first introduced the “short-term” IR in 2012. That rule allowed for a team to designate one player for return after eight weeks had passed. Teams appreciated the flexibility, but once the IR-DTR designation was applied to one player, teams were not able to make a chance and instead use it on a different player. Later, the league modified the IR-DTR rules so that teams did not have to declare their returning player ahead of time, but they were still only allowed to activate one player.

Now, teams will be able to bring two players off of IR midseason, though they’ll presumably have to give the same advanced notice. The current IR-DTR rules stipulate that a player must stay out of practice for six weeks and cannot play for eight weeks before being brought back to the 53-man roster.

Extra Points: Redskins, Packers, Cowboys

May 16th, 2017 at 9:42pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Redskins auditioned Josh Norman’s older brother, Marrio Norman, as Nora Princiotti of the Washington Times writes. “Josh has been touting him pretty hard for the last year and a half, so we wanted to give him a shot and give him a look,” head coach Jay Gruden said. “You know, he’s got a skill set. I’ll tell you what, he’s a good player. He’s played in a couple different leagues and runs around out there good.” The elder Norman, who also plays cornerback, last spent time on an NFL roster in 2014 (Baltimore), and also boasts three stints in the Arena Football League.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

Lane Taylor has earned a $400K raise for the 2017 season after reaching performance escalators last year, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. Taylor, who became the Packers‘ starting left guard after the club surprisingly released Josh Sitton, will now take in a base salary of $2.25MM. Scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next spring once his two-year deal runs out, Taylor graded as the league’s No. 41 guard among 72 qualifiers in 2016, per Pro Football Focus.
The Cowboys will officially gain $14MM in cap space on June 2 when Tony Romo‘s release becomes official, and Dallas could use that savings to ink guard Zack Martin to a long-term extension, as Todd Archer of ESPN.com speculates. Martin, 26, is currently signed through the 2018 season thanks to the Cowboys exercising his fifth-year option, but executive VP Stephen Jones has called a Martin deal a “big priority.” As Archer details, Dallas could conceivably frontload Martin’s next contract in an attempt to fully realize the benefit of quarterback Dak Prescott‘s cheap rookie deal.
The Texans could find it difficult to replace executive Brian Gaine, whom the Bills hired as vice president of player personnel on Monday, Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com details. Gaine had acted as something of a liaison between Houston’s coaching staff and front office, a critical role in an organization where decision-makers haven’t always “been on the same page,” per Breer. In Buffalo, Gaine will oversee the Bills’ pro and college scouting departments.

Latest On Colin Kaepernick

May 16th, 2017 at 9:11pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Seahawks are considering Colin Kaepernick and Robert Griffin III as they look for a backup quarterback, but the club reportedly prefers the former 49ers signal-caller as a reserve behind starter Russell Wilson. Wilson, for what it’s worth, would be comfortable with Seattle adding Kaepernick despite the pair’s rivalry.

Let’s take a look at the latest on Kaepernick as his market seemingly heats up:

Kaepernick is fully intent on playing the 2017 campaign, and been getting ready for football as if he was a starting quarterback for an NFL team,” trainer Josh Hidalgo tells Peter King of TheMMQB.com. While clubs are reportedly concerned about Kaepernick’s weight and vegan diet, or the fact that he may be more committed to social justice issues than football, Hidalgo paints a strikingly different picture of the free agent quarterback. “From the beginning, Colin laid it out: These are the things NFL teams will be concerned about—my weight, my diet,” Hidalgo says. “Then we took care of his explosiveness, and now there is nothing he cannot do.”
The Seahawks’ interest in Kaepernick makes sense for a multitude of reasons, opines Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com. Given that multiple Seattle players have voiced support for Kaepernick’s stance on the national anthem, he wouldn’t present a problem in the locker room — especially because head coach Pete Carroll wouldn’t attempt to restrict what Kaepernick can or cannot say. On the field, Kaepernick doesn’t turn the ball over and can offer a running element, something Wilson couldn’t do in 2016 thanks to a litany of injuries.
Defensive lineman Michael Bennett is among the Seahawks players who would welcome Kaepernick with open arms, as he called Seattle a “perfect place” for Kaepernick during an appearance on 710 ESPN (link via Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com). “I think a person that’s dedicating their life to creating change, why wouldn’t you want that type of leadership in your locker room?” said Bennett. “I think he would be very good in our locker room,” Bennett said. “I don’t know why he wouldn’t. I think we all talk about the same issues. It’s just that he had the courage to be able to step up, and I get it.”

DeAngelo Hall May Start Season On PUP List

May 16th, 2017 at 8:16pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Veteran Redskins safety DeAngelo Hall may begin the season on the physically unable to perform list, head coach Jay Gruden told reporters, including John Keim of ESPN.com.

Hall, 33, appeared in only three games last season before suffering a torn ACL. Scheduled to earn $4.25MM in non-guaranteed base salary in 2017, Hall could conceivably be viewed as a candidate for release. But Washington has no plans to cut Hall at the moment, per Keim, as the club wants to give him a shot at recovery before deciding to part ways.

If Hall does have to miss time at the start of the 2017 campaign, the Redskins should be well-prepared to account for his absence. Washington signed D.J. Swearinger to a three-year, $13.5MM contract in March, and plans to use 2016 second-round pick Su’a Cravens at safety full-time. Other safeties on the Redskins’ roster include Will Blackmon, Montae Nicholson, Deshazor Everett, and Josh Harvey-Clemons.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/16/17

May 16th, 2017 at 7:41pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Today’s draft pick signings:

The Titans have signed third-round tight end Jonnu Smith, the club announced today. Tennessee has now signed five of its nine-man draft class. Heading into the draft, Smith was often compared to the tight end he’ll now be playing behind with the Titans, veteran Delanie Walker. Smith, who should earn roughly $3.1MM over the life of his four-year rookie deal, has a clear path to playing time in Tennessee, as the only other tight ends on the roster aside from Walker are Jace Amaro and Phillip Supernaw.
The Jets announced that they’ve signed fourth-round wide receiver Chad Hansen. A Cal product, Hansen is now the fourth Jets rookie to ink a contract. After posting more than 1,200 yards and 11 touchdowns during his junior campaign, Hansen joins a wide open Gang Green depth chart at wideout. With Eric Decker coming off injury and still a release candidate, and Robby Anderson facing legal trouble, Hansen could contribute early in his rookie season.
The Jaguars have agreed to terms with fifth-round linebacker Blair Brown, the club announced today. While Jacksonville already boasts three starting linebackers in Myles Jack, Paul Posluszny, and Telvin Smith, the latter two are scheduled to become unrestricted free agents next spring. Brown, then, gives the Jaguars insurance at the position, and will likely serve as a high-end reserve in 2017. Heading into the draft, Lance Zierlein of NFL.com praised Brown’s “short area burst” and ability to “drop into space.”
The Dolphins announced that they’ve signed fifth-round defensive tackle Davon Godchaux. Miami was known to be searching for a rotational tackle to play behind Ndamukong Suh and Jordan Phillips, and Goxchaux now figures to play that role. Godchaux, an LSU product, is the sixth member of the Dolphins’ draft class to get under contract — only first-rounder Charles Harris remains unsigned.
The Seahawks have signed sixth-round defensive back Mike Tyson, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Tyson, a Cincinnati product, is expected to be used as a cornerback in Seattle after playing safety at the collegiate level.