Bills Interviewing Trey Brown For GM Gig
There’s a new name to add to the list of Bills general manager candidates. According to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter), the team’s owners will be interviewing Trey Brown, the Eagles’ Director of College Scouting, for the open position today.
After working as a scout with the Patriots for three years, Brown joined the Eagles organization in 2013. Having originally served as the team’s West Coast Area Scout, Brown presumably had a major influence on the team’s selection of Zach Ertz and Matt Barkley. Last offseason, he was promoted to the Director of College Scouting position. Previously, Brown was a standout cornerback at UCLA, and he had a brief stint with the Bears after being signed as an undrafted rookie.
As our own Zach Links previously noted, it’s uncertain how much clout the organization’s next GM will ultimately have. Sean McDermott reportedly had a larger voice in the team’s recent draft than their now-former general manager, Doug Whaley, and it’s uncertain whether the head coach will continue to have a front office presence. Whaley and the entire scouting department were fired last week.
Brown is now the third reported candidate for the open gig. The team reportedly met with Panthers executive Brandon Beane and Texans director of player personnel Brian Gaine earlier this week. Panthers director of player personnel Don Gregory is supposedly on the team’s radar, while running back LeSean McCoy has been touting Chiefs co-director of player personnel Brett Veach.
AFC Notes: Browns, Brantley, Charles
The Browns are currently rostering four quarterbacks in Cody Kessler, Brock Osweiler, DeShone Kizer, and Kevin Hogan. Despite the depth, the grouping doesn’t have a whole lot of experience, as the four signal-callers have combined for 49 career games. Despite the inexperience, the front office doesn’t anticipate adding a veteran quarterback to their roster.
“That would surprise me,” head of football operations Sashi Brown said on WKNR 850 AM (via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com). “I’ll never say never, and we’re always out there looking for what’s available to us. But very few transactions happen around the league, maybe one or two a year that would affect the quarterback position, particularly a starting-caliber quarterback. So I would anticipate and feel really comfortable about the four guys we have going into the season.”
Let’s take a look at some other notes from around the AFC…
- While appearing on ESPN’s Mike and Mike, Brown explained the logic that went behind the Browns selection of Florida defensive tackle Caleb Brantley in the sixth round. “We’ll see what the prosecutor’s office does here, but that was another thing,” Brown said (via Nate Ulrich of Ohio.com). “There was no warrant issued for his arrest. There was an allegation of what happened. So we did our diligence.” Brantley is accused of punching a woman back in April.
- Brown also indicated that he wasn’t rushing to make a Brantley decision before the legal process plays itself out. “We don’t want to prematurely rush to a judgment or presume that we have all the facts, so [we’ll] wait to let the process play out and do as much work on it as we can and then make a decision,” Brown said. “With these legal processes, sometimes they take longer than anticipated. But we do anticipate in the next several weeks that some resolution will come.”
- New Broncos running back Jamaal Charles recently appeared on the “Unmatched Sports with Cal Jones” podcast, and he discussed the Chiefs decision to cut bait on him and his $3.75MM contract. “I thought maybe they would give me a grace period. But I haven’t performed the last two years,” Charles said (via Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post). “At the same time, I know it was about business. I think it would have been cool if they came and told me about a pay cut because I think I would’ve taken that pay cut, because I think I owed it to them for allowing me to be on the team. But I felt like when I got that call, it was just like, man, it was just OK, man. If it can happen to Peyton Manning it can happen to anybody.” Charles left Kansas City as the organization’s all-time leader in rushing yards.
Chiefs Auditioning Garrett Hartley
There will be more than 70 players attending the Chiefs’ rookie camp, including several intriguing veterans. According to Terez A. Paylor of The Kansas City Star (via Twitter), the organization will be auditioning kicker Garrett Hartley and cornerback Stanley Jean-Baptiste.
Hartley is presumably being brought in to provide some competition for incumbent Cairo Santos. The free agent kicker hasn’t appeared in an NFL contest since 2014, when he played in a pair of games for the Browns. The 30-year-old was a mainstay on the Saints special teams unit from 2010 through 2013. His best season came in 2012, when he converted 81.8-percent of his field goal attempts and 100-percent of his extra point attempts.
While the Chiefs still haven’t committed to Santos longterm, it’s probably a long shot that the 25-year-old will end up losing his gig. The former Tulane product has served as Kansas City’s kicker for the past three seasons, and he had his best campaign in 2016. Santos finished the year having converted 88.6-percent of his field goals and 92-percent of his extra point attempts.
The Saints were hoping that Jean-Baptiste would be a consistent presence in their secondary when they selected him in the second round of the 2014 draft. However, the cornerback has had difficulty finding a role in the NFL, as he’s only appeared in four games over three seasons. If he does catch on with the Chiefs, he’ll be competing with a number of cornerbacks (including Phillip Gaines, Kenneth Acker, D.J. White, Terrance Mitchell, and Vernon Harris) for a top reserve role.
Steelers Make Three Moves
The Steelers made a trio of minor transactions yesterday. According to Mark Kaboly of DKPittsburghSports.com (via Twitter), the team has released long-snapper Kameron Canaday and waived/injured wideout Dez Stewart. Meanwhile, Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the Steelers have signed offensive lineman Jake Rodgers.
Stewart was signed to a reserve/futures contract back in February. The wideout was a standout at Ohio Dominican University (Division II), hauling in 196 receptions for 3,197 yards and 25 touchdowns over 43 collegiate games. The receiver was especially expendable after the Steelers selected JuJu Smith-Schuster during last week’s draft.
Canaday went from a 2016 undrafted free agent to the Cardinals starting long snapper last season, but he was waived after only three weeks. The Steelers snatched him in February, but similar to Stewart, Canaday was recently squeezed out by a rookie. Pittsburgh selected Colin Holba in the sixth-round of last week’s draft, and the rookie will compete with incumbent Greg Warren for the starting gig.
Rodgers has yet to appear in an NFL game after being selected in the seventh round of the 2015 draft. The Eastern Washington product has spent time with the Falcons, Giants, and Panthers. Assuming Rodgers continues to play offensive tackle, he’ll be competing with Jerald Hawkins and Brian Mihalik for snaps.
Aaron Lynch At Risk Of Getting Cut?
Could Aaron Lynch‘s tenure in San Francisco be coming to an end? According to Grant Cohn of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat (via Twitter), the 49ers linebacker is 20 pounds overweight and is at risk of getting cut.
The 24-year-old has spent his entire three-year career with the 49ers. After being selected out of South Florida in the fifth round of the 2014 draft, Lynch proceeded to play in all 16 games as a rookie. His sophomore campaign was arguably his best season, as the linebacker finished with 38 tackles and 6.5 sacks.
The linebacker was suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season after violating the NFL’s Policy and Program for Substances of Abuse. Lynch ended up finishing last season with career-lows in games (seven), tackles (12), and sacks (1.5). A nagging ankle injury continually kept him off the field following his suspension.
Lynch was expected to play defensive end in new defensive coordinator Robert Saleh‘s scheme. However, Cohn later said that the defender was the most likely to be cut among the Trent Baalke holdovers (right ahead of Vance McDonald). If the 49ers do ultimately cut Lynch, they’ll probably need some reinforcement at defensive end. Behind starters Arik Armstead and Solomon Thomas, the team is only rostering defensive ends Lynch and Ronald Blair.
Extra Points: Vikes, Lions, Jets, Cards
Thanks to the brutal knee injury he suffered last summer, there’s no guarantee Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater will play football again. Nevertheless, head coach Mike Zimmer spoke encouragingly about Bridgewater’s future Friday, telling Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press that he’s optimistic the 24-year-old will be a Viking for the long haul (Twitter link). While Bridgewater is technically entering a contract year (the Vikings declined his fifth-year option for 2018 earlier this week), he won’t necessarily be a free agent next offseason. If Bridgewater starts the season on the physically unable to prepare list, he’d miss at least six games, causing his contract to toll, reports Mike Florio of the Pro Football Talk. Thus, Bridgewater would remain a Viking in 2018 for the same salary he’ll make this year ($1.354MM).
More from around the league:
- The odds of the Lions re-signing free agent wide receiver Anquan Boldin continue to decrease, writes Kyle Meinke of MLive.com. The two sides haven’t had contact in over a month, notes Meinke, who points out that recent developments suggest Boldin won’t return to Detroit for a second year. The Lions used a third-round pick on wideout Kenny Golladay in last week’s draft, for one, and then gave away Boldin’s No. 80 to fourth-round tight end Michael Roberts. (Theoretically, Boldin could get that number back in a negotiation with Roberts, but Meinke regards it as a sign that the Lions are going in another direction.)
- The Jets released safety Marcus Gilchrist on Thursday, but they aren’t ruling out re-signing him “once he heals” from his knee injury, head coach Todd Bowles said Friday (Twitter link via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY). The six-year veteran tore his patellar tendon last season, which limited him to 13 games and forced him to injured reserve in mid-December. Gilchrist has started in all of his appearances dating back to 2013, but it seems doubtful that streak would continue if he were to return to the Jets. Gang Green, after all, used its first- and second-round picks in the draft on safeties Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye.
- Before signing with the 49ers, notable undrafted free agent tight end Cole Hikutini drew interest from the Saints, Lions, Patriots, and Texans, tweets Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area. Hikutini, a Louisville product, was a favorite of many draftniks — Rob Rang of CBSSports.com, for instance, graded Hikutini as a fifth- or sixth-round selection. Ultimately, Hikutini landed a $20K guarantee from San Francisco.
- The possibility of free agent quarterback Blaine Gabbert signing with the Cardinals “remains alive,” tweets Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic. Gabbert has an important fan in Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians, per Somers.
Zach Links and Dallas Robinson contributed to this post.
AFC Notes: Watson, Kizer, Jets, Broncos
After the Texans traded up in the first round of the draft to select ex-Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson 12th overall, head coach Bill O’Brien declared that veteran signal-caller Tom Savage would start Week 1. Like O’Brien, general manager Rick Smith regards Savage as the favorite to land the job, but the executive isn’t as ready to hand him the role. In an interview with ESPN Radio’s Stephen A. Smith on Thursday, Rick Smith indicated that Watson will have a chance to compete with Savage in the coming months, per Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com. “We want to provide a competitive environment across the board. So [Watson will] compete,” Smith said. “[But] like I said, we feel good about Tom and his abilities to manage the offense. But yeah, [Watson] will come in, and just like every other guy on the roster, he’ll have time to play.”
More from the AFC:
- As is the case with Houston, the Browns are prepared to let their rookie signal-caller compete for a starting job. In Cleveland’s case, it’s second-rounder DeShone Kizer, who will be part of “an open competition” that could also feature Brock Osweiler, Cody Kessler and Kevin Hogan, GM Sashi Brown said Thursday on ESPN’s Mike and Mike (via Nate Ulrich of Ohio.com). Meanwhile, speaking with Cleveland Browns Daily, head coach Hue Jackson lavished praise on Kizer, a former Notre Dame star who went 52nd in the draft. “He has the characteristics that we as an organization covet. He’s a big man,” Jackson said of the 6-foot-4, 233-pounder. “He has the AFC North stature that I love. He has a big arm. He’s very intelligent. He’s played in a real big-time football program. He understands the demands of playing the position. He understands the demands of being a quarterback and the face of the franchise.”
- Free agent quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson will attend the Jets‘ rookie minicamp on a tryout basis, reports Rich Cimini of ESPN.com. Bethel-Thompson, 28, is certainly familiar with the workout circuit, as he’s spent time with five NFL clubs and one team each in the Canadian Football League, Arena Football League, and United Football League. He also took part in the Spring League earlier this year. Bethel-Thompson’s last NFL stint came with the Eagles, with whom he earned two stints in 2016. For Gang Green, Bethel-Thompson likely only represents an offeason option, as the club already boasts signal-callers Josh McCown, Bryce Petty, and Christian Hackenberg.
- The Broncos on Friday announced a restructuring of their front office under executive vice president of football operations/general manager John Elway. Director of pro personnel Tom Heckert has been promoted to senior personnel advisor, while A.J. Durso has been promoted to take Heckert’s previous post. Brian Stark, meanwhile, has been promoted from national scout to director of college scouting. Denver’s staff changes will help account for the loss of former scouting director Adam Peters, who left for a personnel role with the 49ers in January.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Seahawks Expect To Retain Richard Sherman
Less than two weeks ago, Seahawks general manager John Schneider wasn’t ready to rule out trading cornerback Richard Sherman. But with the draft having passed since then, it appears the team’s chance to deal the four-time Pro Bowler has gone by the wayside.
[RELATED: Earl Thomas On Track For Opener]
As a guest on the “Brock and Salk” show on 710 ESPN Seattle on Thursday, head coach Pete Carroll addressed the odds of a Sherman trade, saying (via Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com): “I don’t think anybody’s going to offer us anything that would make it worthwhile, because there’s no draft involved and all that kind of stuff. But that’s always out there. There’s always opportunities to trade. But the likelihood is like zero percent, it seems like. Teams don’t want to give up stuff. They don’t want to trade at times like this, and it’s really hard to navigate through a trade with experienced players during draft time. It just doesn’t happen very often.”
While Sherman and the Seahawks had mutual interest in parting ways earlier this spring, no one was willing to meet the club’s asking price (reportedly a first-round pick this year and a conditional mid-rounder in 2018). Now, there’s “no animosity at all” between the two sides, according to Carroll, who believes his relationship with the 29-year-old is “as good as it’s ever been.” To Carroll, shopping Sherman was an example of the Seahawks doing their due diligence.
“We don’t want to trade guys,” he said. “We want to keep our guys. But we have to in an effort to always work to be better and help our team. We’ve got to listen and all that. So we went through that process. There was very open conversation about that.”
Now that Sherman will return to helm the Legion of Boom again in 2017, Carroll noted that the Seahawks need “to continue to dig into [Sherman] and make sure that he’s really at the height of his game, intensity-wise.” Sherman wasn’t necessarily at the height of his game, performance-wise, in 2016, but he still served as a top-notch defender. In the fifth straight 16-start season of his career, the six-year veteran tallied four interceptions and 13 passes defensed, and ranked among Pro Football Focus’ 15 best corners.
Lions’ Glover Quin Wants Extension
The 2017 campaign will be free safety Glover Quin‘s fifth season in Detroit. As a potential contract-year player, it could also be his last season in the Motor City, but Quin hopes that isn’t the case. The 31-year-old has approached the Lions about an extension, writes Kyle Menke of MLive.com.
“I would love to be here in Detroit, and if I sign an extension, I’d probably finish my career here — that’d be huge for me,” Quin said Thursday. “But I can’t control that. I don’t know if it’s going to happen, when it’s going to happen. My job is like I’ve always said since I got in the league, is I’m a player. So I just play, and I’ll let the coaches coach, the managers manage, and the trainers train.”
While it’s unclear whether the Lions are interested in re-upping Quin, it’s obvious the team has gotten strong production from the former Texan since signing him to a five-year, $23.5MM contract in 2013. In Detroit, Quinn has continued an iron-man streak that dates back to 2010, having missed zero games since then (and he only sat out one in 2009, his rookie year). Quin has also started in each of his appearances going back to Year 2 of his career, and in 64 regular-season games with the Lions, he has piled up 16 interceptions. A career-high seven of those picks came in 2014, Quin’s lone Pro Bowl/All-Pro season, but his quality play has continued even without the accolades. Quin posted 68 tackles and two INTs last year, when he astoundingly played all 1,027 of the Lions’ defensive snaps and ranked an impressive 23rd in performance among Pro Football Focus’ 90 qualified safeties.
Given that he’ll turn 32 next January, Quin’s next deal is unlikely to match his soon-to-expire contract in either length or total value. But the average value of an extension (or a free agent pact next year) could be similar to the $4.7MM mean on his current accord, evidenced by contracts given out during the past two offseasons to over-30 safeties such as the Raiders’ Reggie Nelson (two years, $8.5MM), the Cardinals’ Antoine Bethea (three years, $12.75MM) and the Bears’ Quintin Demps (three years, $13.5MM). All of those players had to leave their previous organizations to land those deals, which Quin is prepared to do if the Lions are uninterested in re-signing him.
“If they feel like I deserve that and have earned that, then they’ll make it happen,” he said. “If not, then I’ll play my year in Detroit and say goodbye to you good people.”
Draft Pick Signings: Jets, Patriots
Along with the Dolphins, a couple of other AFC East clubs made draft signings Friday. Here they are:
- The Jets inked two sixth-round picks, Louisiana-Lafayette running back Elijah McGuire and Mississippi cornerback Derrick Jones, to their rookie deals, tweets Brian Costello of the New York Post. McGuire (No. 188) and Jones (No. 204) are the first members of Gang Green’s nine-player class to sign.
- Patriots sixth-round offensive tackle Conor McDermott has put pen to paper, per ESPN’s Field Yates (on Twitter). At No. 211, the ex-UCLA Bruin was the final selection last weekend for New England, which only had four picks. The other three haven’t signed yet.