AFC Rumors: Steelers, Colts, Bolts
Now that they won’t be able to extend running back Le’Veon Bell until next year, the Steelers are focusing on a new deal for left tackle Alejandro Villanueva, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. While there has only been “minimal movement” toward an extension, neither side wants Villanueva to miss a significant portion of the summer, reports Fowler, who notes that talks could ramp up before the Steelers open camp July 27. Given that he’s an exclusive rights free agent who won’t be able to reach the open market until after the 2018 season, Pittsburgh doesn’t have to award Villanueva a raise now. In doing so, though, the Steelers would lock up a player who has improbably become an integral part of their offense since joining the team as a practice squad player in 2014. The former Army Ranger captain debuted in 2015 and has appeared in 32 straight games, starting 26. He started each of Pittsburgh’s games last year and was the only member of its offense to play all 1,083 of the unit’s snaps. As a result, the 28-year-old is hoping for a new contract and hasn’t signed his $615K ERFA tender.
More on Pittsburgh and two other AFC franchises:
- Bell rejected a five-year offer worth roughly $60MM prior to Monday’s deadline for franchise-tagged players to sign long-term deals. One of Bell’s former Steelers teammates, retired cornerback Ike Taylor, shed some light on the star rusher’s demands Wednesday on NFL Network. According to Taylor, Bell informed him that he wants a contract that reflects his performance as both a No. 1 back and a No. 2 receiver – likely something in the neighborhood of $15MM per year (Twitter links via Mike Garafolo of NFL.com). Bell does have multiple prolific pass-catching seasons under his belt, including his 75-reception showing in 2016. Had the Steelers met his demands, Bell would’ve crushed LeSean McCoy‘s league-leading contract for RBs. The five-year, $40MM-plus deal McCoy signed with the Bills in 2015 continues to stand above the rest, though.
- Indications are that Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri wants to play at least two more seasons, reports Kevin Bowen of the team’s website. Set to turn 45 in December, Vinatieri is the league’s oldest player, but the former Patriot remains one of the game’s premier kickers. He connected on 27 of 31 tries (7 of 9 from 50-plus yards) last season, tying him for the league’s sixth-highest conversion rate (87.1 percent). Vinatieri was also one of five kickers who didn’t miss an extra point, hitting on all 44 attempts. Hanging around for two more years should enable Vinatieri to pass Hall of Famer Morten Andersen as the league’s all-time leader in both points and field goals made, Bowen points out.
- A back injury could sideline Chargers first-round wide receiver Mike Williams for his rookie season, but they should have the weaponry to survive his absence, notes Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. With Keenan Allen returning from an injury-marred 2016 to complement Tyrell Williams, Travis Benjamin and Dontrelle Inman – all three of whom were productive last year – the Bolts figure to boast a strong corps of wideouts. The Chargers also have an enviable tight end duo (Hunter Henry and Antonio Gates) and pass-catching running back Melvin Gordon, who racked up 41 receptions last season, giving quarterback Philip Rivers plenty of proven targets.
Lions, Stafford Working Toward Deal
Less than a month ago, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr signed a five-year, $125MM extension to become the NFL’s highest-paid player. Carr’s stay atop the league’s earnings mountain might not last much longer, though, as there’s “internal optimism” that the Lions and quarterback Matthew Stafford will agree to a new deal within the next two weeks, reports Stacey Dales of NFL Network (via Chris Wesseling of NFL.com).
Stafford’s entering the final season of the three-year, $53MM extension he signed in July 2013, but his next contract figures to obliterate that pact in value and could surpass Carr’s. The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Stafford inked his current pact after a 20-touchdown, 17-interception showing for him and a 4-12 season for Detroit, and both he and the Lions have been far more successful since.
Stafford helped guide the Lions to a decent 34-30 record and two playoff berths over the past four seasons, and he’s now arguably fresh off the best two-year stretch of his career. Thanks in part to Jim Bob Cooter‘s promotion to offensive coordinator, Stafford tossed 56 TDs against 23 picks and completed upward of 67 percent of passes from 2015-16. He threw 24 scores and a meager 10 INTs last season, when both Football Outsiders and Pro Football Focus ranked him as the league’s eighth-best passer.
Given the 29-year-old Stafford’s strong output in recent seasons, the ever-rising salary cap and the importance of his position, a mega-deal looks like a formality. Lions president Rod Wood implied as much last month, saying he’d be “comfortable” making Stafford the league’s top-paid player and adding, “It’s a premium position, and you need to have a very, very good player at that position to be credible and be competitive, and I think we do have that, and we’re working on getting a deal done.”
Another sizable contract would be the third for Stafford, who had the benefit of entering the NFL as the No. 1 pick in 2009, shortly before the league introduced the rookie wage scale in 2011. His initial deal was worth $78MM over six years and included $41.7MM in guaranteed money. Having established himself as a quality signal-caller since then, the eight-year veteran is on a path to becoming one of the highest earners in league history.
Latest On Ezekiel Elliott
Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott may have had a role in a fight at a Dallas bar on Sunday, but police are halting the investigation because they can’t find the victim and witnesses aren’t cooperating. Rebecca Lopez of WFAA_TV first reported the Dallas Police Department would suspend the investigation, and the DPD subsequently issued a statement confirming it (Twitter links).
“The assault offense that occurred July 16th at the Clutch Bar located at 2520 Cedar Springs Road has been suspended due to the lack of a complaint,” announced public information officer Melinda Gutierrez. “Dallas detectives made several attempts to contact the victim through various ways but at this time have not been able to make contact. To date no witnesses have come forward to provide any additional information about this incident.”
This is the second positive development regarding this incident for Elliott, whom fellow bar patron Michael Huffman defended afterward, claiming that the Cowboy didn’t do anything wrong. While it looks as if Elliott will escape legal ramifications for this matter, the NFL is presumably still looking into it, and it’s continuing to investigate domestic violence allegations him from 2016. Elliott’s bracing for a suspension stemming from the abuse claims.
Latest On Jaguars’ Dante Fowler
Jaguars defensive end Dante Fowler is facing misdemeanor charges of simple battery and mischief as a result of a Tuesday arrest, but that wasn’t his first run-in with the law during his two-year NFL career. In fact, Fowler has committed 10 traffic violations since December 2015, reports Mike Kaye of First Coast News (Twitter links). What’s more, Fowler was arrested in Miami Beach in March 2016 and charged with misdemeanor counts of assaulting a police offer and resisting arrest without violence, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times.
The arrest report states that Fowler hindered police from trying to break up a crowd in front a bar, as Auman details. Fowler “ignored verbal requests to move off the road,” writes Auman, and, when an officer put his arm on Fowler’s, the Jaguar said “Get the [expletive] off me” and swung his arm backward “in an obvious attempt to strike” the officer, the report indicates. “Numerous officers” then had to escort Fowler out. Despite that, the misdemeanor charges against him were dropped in December 2016, after he completed a pretrial intervention program for first-time offenders.
Now that Fowler has multiple off-field blemishes on his resume, it could lead to a harsher punishment from the NFL. Even if the authorities let Fowler off relatively scot-free for his latest arrest, the league may hand the 22-year-old a suspension. That would temporarily deprive the Jaguars a defensive starter and represent another setback in the career of Fowler, the 2015 third overall pick who missed his rookie season with a torn ACL and was involved in an unbecoming incident last year in which he was caught on video watching a fight between his girlfriend and ex-girlfriend. The league was aware of it, calling the images “disturbing,” but it didn’t punish Fowler.
Latest On Chargers’ Mike Williams
3:35pm: We now have conflicting info regarding Williams. Two sources with direct knowledge of the situation tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) that surgery is not a consideration, though it was a possibility as recently as three or four weeks ago. Williams, he hears, is improving.
3:04pm: Awful news for the Chargers. Rookie wide receiver Mike Williams might need season-ending surgery on a herniated disk in his back, league sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter. 
Williams recently received a second epidural on his back in a last-ditch effort to get him ready in time to participate in training camp, even if it only meant participating in the latter portion of it. As of right now, the team is unsure about whether he’ll be able to take the field in August. They’re hoping he’ll respond well to the epidural, but if he does not, there is a real chance that he will miss the entire 2017 season.
“This may be a lot more serious than people thought,” said one source who spoke with Schefter.
The Chargers have known about the issue since at least May, but it’s not clear when the injury first occured. Williams’ issue first became apparent to the Bolts during the rookie minicamp in the spring, but one source said it’s possible it was injured at the combine and during his pro day. Williams performed well at both events, so the Chargers might not have picked up on the problem.
The Chargers selected Williams with the No. 7 overall pick in this year’s draft. Los Angeles was hoping to slot Williams in as the team’s No. 2 wide receiver this year, providing support to top target Keenan Allen. If Williams is ruled out for the year, it will be a major setback for the Chargers’ offense.
Suspension Would Cost Ezekiel Elliott
If Ezekiel Elliott is suspended for any reason by the NFL, he’ll be feeling it in the wallet. In addition to missing game checks, Elliott will have to repay the Cowboys a portion of his signing bonus, as ESPN.com’s Todd Archer outlines. For Elliott, that means giving up nearly $240K per missed game. 
Per the terms of the CBA, players suspended under the drug and PED policies are forced to repay their teams. Whether a player is suspended under the personal conduct policy, repayment is at the discretion of the team. However, multiple agents who have done business with Dallas tell Archer that the Cowboys have strict language in their deals that call for the full amount.
The league has been investigating abuse allegations against Elliott for roughly one year. Recently, Elliott may have compounded his problem by participating in a barroom brawl. Some witnesses say that it was Elliott who punched a man in the face on Sunday night in a Texas bar, leaving him with a broken nose. However, at least one witness says that the punch was not thrown by Elliott. It’s also worth noting that Elliott has yet to be questioned by police for his potential role in the incident.
Panthers’ Marty Hurney On His New Role
Marty Hurney is back in charge of the Panthers, but he told reporters on Wednesday afternoon that he will not seek to parlay his interim GM role into the full-time position. But, until the job is filled by another executive, Hurney have will full say over the 53-man roster. He’ll be instrumental in helping to find the team’s new GM, but the organization will not target candidates until after the season is through.
Hurney also believes that he has the trust of owner Jerry Richardson to make both short and long term decisions for the team, including contracts that may extend beyond the 2017 season.
Here’s a look at some more highlights from today’s presser. All links go to Jordan Rodrigue and Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer on Twitter, unless noted otherwise:
On talks that he is too old or too far removed from the job:
“I wouldn’t come here if I didn’t think I had the energy, the knowledge and the insight it will take to help this organization.” (link)
On whether the firing of Dave Gettleman was a rash decision by the Panthers:
“I can tell you knowing Jerry Richardson, rash decisions aren’t made. It’s about winning games.” (link)
On how he’ll approach the job differently this time:
“I want the analytical part of my brain to take over the emotional part of my brain. Some mistakes may have been due to that.” (link)
On Gettleman:
“Dave Gettleman did a terrific job and I never lost pride in this organization.” (link)
Bears Sign Mitch Trubisky
The Bears have signed first round pick Mitch Trubisky, according to a team announcement. It’s good timing for both sides as Bears rookies report to training camp today.
Even as the two sides took additional time to come to an accord, Trubisky made it clear that he would not be training camp holdout a la Joey Bosa.
“I’m not going to miss any practices or anything like that,” Trubisky said in late June. “I’m excited to sign my contract as soon as possible, however that goes down. But I don’t see that being held out through training camp; even if it did, I’m going to be practicing and all that. I’m looking forward to getting it done as soon as possible. I’m a Chicago Bear, no matter if they let me sign or what. I guess not, but I am.”
The Bears shocked the world in April by not only selecting Trubisky with their top pick, but trading up from No. 3 overall to No. 2 for the right to do it. Switching places with the 49ers cost picks No. 67 and No. 111 in the 2017 draft, plus a 2018 a third-round pick.
The pressure is on for Trubisky, though it won’t necessarily be felt right away. For now, the plan is for free agent acquisition Mike Glennon to be the Bears’ starter while Trubisky learns from the bench.
The deal leaves us with six unsigned first round picks: defensive lineman Solomon Thomas (49ers), wide receiver Corey Davis (Titans), safety Jamal Adams (Jets), quarterback Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs), cornerback Gareon Conley (Raiders), and safety Jabrill Peppers (Browns).
Photo courtesy of Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.
Jaguars To Host Gary Barnidge On Visit
Gary Barnidge could finally be getting closer to finding work for 2017. The Jaguars are bringing the former Pro Bowl tight end in for a Tuesday workout and visit, a league source tells Mike Kaye of First Coast News (on Twitter). 
[RELATED: Jaguars Are One Of Eight Fits For Barnidge]
This offseason, the Jags parted ways with tight end Julius Thomas and their only significant addition at the position has been former Raider Mychal Rivera. When considering that Rivera hasn’t topped 300 receiving yards since 2014 and that Marcedes Lewis hasn’t been setting the world on fire in recent years, Barnidge could make a lot of sense for Jacksonville. This season will be a critical year in the evaluation of quarterback Blake Bortles, and he’ll need a big reliable target if he hopes to establish himself as the answer going forward.
In 16 games last season, the tight end hauled in 55 receptions for 612 yards and two touchdowns. That wasn’t a great stat line, but he’s only two years removed from his breakout 2015 effort. In that campaign, the 6’5″ tight end had 79 receptions, 1,043 receiving yards, and nine touchdowns.
NFL: Panthers Did Not Violate Rooney Rule
When the Panthers hired Marty Hurney to be the team’s interim GM without first interviewing any minority candidates, some wondered if the team was in violation of the Rooney Rule. Apparently, that’s not the case. The NFL tells ESPN.com’s David Newton (Twitter link) that the Panthers did not run afoul of the mandate since Hurney has only been given the job on an interim basis.
When the Panthers hire their true GM down the line, they will be required to satisfy the Rooney Rule. That mandate still applies, even if Hurney somehow winds up being the full-time hire.
It’s conceivable that the league will look to close this loophole next offseason. Recently, the NFL “informally” extended the Rooney Rule to also cover offensive and defensive coordinator positions.