Jets Reach Out To Zach Orr
Count the Jets among the many teams with interest in free agent linebacker Zach Orr, reports Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. Orr’s agent, Robert Sheets, confirmed to Schwartz that the Jets have reached out to his client, adding that they’ll attempt to set up a visit.
Orr, who retired in January thanks to a congenital spine condition, announced Wednesday that he’s considering a comeback after receiving more encouraging medical opinions than he got over the winter. Previously with the Ravens, who are mulling whether to attempt to re-sign him, Orr has a significant portion of the league interested in his services and already has multiple visits lined up – including one with the Lions.
Given that the 25-year-old Orr’s in his prime and coming off a season in which he earned second-team All-Pro honors, it’s no surprise that his unexpected foray into free agency has piqued teams’ interest. Of course, whether he signs with any will come down to if clubs believe he’ll be physically able to continue his career. Should Orr sign with the Jets, he’d replace departed middle linebacker David Harris, who’s now a Patriot after Gang Green released him earlier this month.
Extra Points: Orr, China, Redskins
Free agent linebacker Zach Orr is planning a comeback after retiring in January on account of a congenital spine condition. There’s concern over whether he’ll be able to play with that condition, but Dr. David Chao of the San Diego Union-Tribune expects at least one team’s medical staff to clear Orr. Roughly half the NFL is interested in Orr, so odds do seem to be in his favor. If the 25-year-old does sign with someone, it’s likely that club will require him to sign a waiver releasing it of liability, notes Chao.
More from around the sport:
- The NFL has abandoned its plan to play a regular-season game in China in 2018, reports Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal. Interestingly, the league is now considering kicking off 2019, its 100th season, in China. “It may make better sense to look at that game as an opportunity to celebrate our hundred years, in the event we can pull it off and as a way to look forward to the future,” NFL executive vice president/international Mark Waller told Kaplan.
- Houston Bates and Lynden Trail have a chance of making the Redskins‘ roster thanks to Trent Murphy‘s four-game suspension, Rich Tandler of CSN Mid-Atlantic writes. Last year, Bates served as the team’s No. 4 outside linebacker before a torn ACL ended his season in Week 14. Trail, meanwhile, has great size at 6’7″, 270 pounds, but he’s still raw after two practice squad seasons. Still, the suspension cracks the door open for both players to make the 53-man cut.
- Free agent running back Antonio Andrews pleaded guilty to an assault charge Thursday, according to Stacey Barchenger of the Tennesseean. Andrews, accused in March of punching a man who used a racial slur, was sentenced to six months’ probation and will have the charge expunged from his record if he completes it. On the other hand, if Andrews violates his probation, he’ll serve jail time. Regardless, Andrews could face some form of discipline from the league. It might not matter, however, considering no teams have publicly shown interest in the three-year veteran since the Titans non-tendered him in March. That came after Andrews totaled just two carries in 16 games last season.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Ravens Split On Whether To Pursue Zach Orr
The Ravens’ leading tackler from 2016 is available to be signed, but opinions are split within the organization about whether to pursue him. Linebacker Zach Orr says that doctors have cleared him to play, but not everyone in Baltimore is convinced that he is able to get back on the field. 
“There are a lot of variables that the Ravens are having to deal with,” agent Rob Sheets told 105.7 The Fan (transcript via Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com). “There’s a lot of internal consternation. One side of the line fighting to get Zach Orr back, and another line saying we need to move on.”
Orr’s agent says that he has spoken to 15 teams about his client so far. Today, he is visiting with the Lions and another visit is lined up for tomorrow, though Sheets did not say which team he’ll meet with on Friday. Next week, Orr has three more visits scheduled. Still, some of the Ravens’ top decision makers are not sure that taking Orr back would be a good idea.
The Ravens were planning to retain Orr for 2017, either through the restricted free agent tender or an extension. In the midst of contract talks, Orr opted to retire, citing a congenital spinal condition. Earlier this week, Orr announced that he is looking to come back to football and he is a free agent since the Ravens did not exercise the RFA tender.
Orr had 130 tackles in 2016 and earned second-team All-Pro honors.
Latest On Rams’ Aaron Donald
Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald did not commit to appearing at training camp in a radio interview on Thursday. Donald gave Alex Marvez and Mark Dominik of SiriusXM a non-answer when asked if he would be on hand when camp starts in July. 
“I’m just [going to continue] working, just grinding, and we’re going to see what happens,” Donald said.
Donald reported to mandatory minicamp earlier this summer, so it stands to reason that he would report to training camp even without a deal. It’s possible that the 26-year-old is looking to drum up a little extra leverage for himself with an empty threat. It’s also possible that he’s serious about missing the start of camp, though it would cost him a fair amount of money to sit at home.
The defensive tackle is scheduled to carry a paltry $3.225MM cap number in 2017 before his salary jumps to $6.892MM in 2018 under the fifth-year option. A new deal for Donald will likely reset the market for defensive tackles.
Currently, Ndamukong Suh has the top deal of any DT – he’s in the midst of a six-year, $114.4MM pact with $60MM guaranteed. Unlike Suh, Donald will not be negotiating his deal on the open market. However, a new pact this year would make him two years younger than Suh at the time of signing and the salary cap has increased significantly since Suh’s deal in 2015. There’s also this: Donald is arguably an even better player than Suh was in his prime.
AFC East Notes: Dolphins, Jets, Pennel
One source in the Dolphins building tells Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald that rookie defensive tackles Davon Godchaux and Vincent Taylor are a bit too green right now to be rotation players. The Dolphins were planning on using either Godchaux or Taylor as a No. 3 tackle, so that’s an issue for Miami. As Jackson points out, Dan Williams, Vance Walker, and Paul Soliai are still available.
Recently, PFR’s Dallas Robinson ran down the best available defensive free agents at each position and Williams topped his list on the interior line.
Here’s more from the AFC East:
- In today’s article, Jackson also gave an update on Dolphins starting center Mike Pouncey and noted that former Jet Nick Mangold is still not in Miami’s plans.
- Right now, Darryl Slater of NJ.com doesn’t see defensive lineman Mike Pennel making the Jets‘ cut. The Jets claimed Pennel off waivers from the Packers in February. Last year, Pennel served a pair of four-game bans for substance abuse, but that did not dissuade the Jets from taking a low-risk gamble on him. Now, it looks like the last DL spot may go to Lawrence Thomas instead of him. In Pennel’s best year, 2015, he established career highs in games (16), starts (five), tackles (24) and sacks (one).
- Wesley Johnson has the unenviable task of serving as Mangold’s replacement at center for the Jets, Brian Costello of the New York Post writes. Johnson isn’t 100% guaranteed the starting job, Costello notes, but it would be a surprise if he lost the battle to offseason addition Jonotthan Harrison. Assuming the job is his, Johnson will have to command an offensive line that has three new starters, which means that there will be lots of communication issues.
Latest On Dolphins C Mike Pouncey
The expectation is that Mike Pouncey will be ready for Week 1, a source “very close” to the Dolphins center tells Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Although Pouncey has not been cleared by team doctors for action yet, he apparently feels that he is just about ready to play. 
[RELATED: Dolphins LB Koa Misi Still Not Cleared]
Pouncey missed 11 games during the 2016 season thanks to his troublesome hip. Apparently, that problem was compounded by a bacterial infection in his inner thigh. The infection has been treated, however, so Pouncey is almost back to normal.
This is all very good news for the Dolphins since they did not put a ton of resources into a Plan B for Pouncey. If Pouncey is not good to go, then they’ll likely use Kraig Urbik as the starter in the middle with support from free agent addition Ted Larsen and Anthony Steen. Players apparently prefer Urbik over Steen at center because Steen sometimes took too long to make calls last year.
In related news, the Dolphins have not checked in on free agent center Nick Mangold lately. Miami did reach out to Mangold’s team at one point this offseason, but there has been zero movement on that front this summer.
Raiders, Gabe Jackson Begin Talks
Contracts talks between the Raiders and guard Gabe Jackson are underway, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter links) hears. However, her source cautions that it is “very, very early” in the process. Ultimately, Anderson is told that the deal is almost certain to get done (Twitter link).
It has been expected for months now that the Raiders and Jackson would commence contract negotiations this summer. Naturally, a new deal for Derek Carr was No. 1 on the team’s to-do list, but Jackson is next up now that the quarterback has been inked to a five-year, $125MM deal. Extensions for Jackson and linebacker Khalil Mack now stand as the team’s biggest priorities. The Raiders should have the flexibility to get those deals done plus a fresh contract for wide receiver Amari Cooper thanks to the team-friendly structure of Carr’s pact.
The Raiders are eager to lock up Jackson for the foreseeable future, but an extension won’t come cheap. Anderson hears that Jackson’s camp is looking to top Joel Bitonio‘s $10MM annual average salary and may look to approach the AAV of Kelechi Osemele ($11.7MM) and Kevin Zeitler ($12MM).
Jackson, 26 in July, has been a starter since entering the league as a third-round pick in 2014. Last season, Jackson graded as the league’s No. 20 offensive guard among 72 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus.
Bills’ Jonathan Williams Avoids Suspension
Good news for the Bills and Jonathan Williams. The running back will not be disciplined under the league’s substance abuse policy, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 
Williams was accused of driving while intoxicated last summer in Arkansas, just months after the Bills selected him in the fifth round. He was found not guilty of the charge earlier this month, but the NFL has been known to suspend players even in situations where they are acquitted by a court. The Bills were bracing for the possibility of not having Williams at the start of the season, but they now know that they will have him on the roster for Week 1 as LeSean McCoy‘s backup.
Last year, Mike Gillislee made a name for himself as McCoy’s primary understudy and Williams could make a similar leap this year. In 2016, Williams had only 27 carries in eleven games, but he should be used a lot more this year. Free agents Mike Tolbert and Joe Banyard are also in the fold in Buffalo, along with fullback Patrick DiMarco.
Redskins Notes: Cousins, Hall, McCoy
Redskins senior vice president of player personnel Doug Williams recently said that Kirk Cousins has proven that he’s among the league’s 15 best quarterbacks. Williams is selling Cousins short, Seth Walder of ESPN.com argues, and the Redskins will have to give him better than “above average” compensation to keep him.
The Cousins-led offense recorded the second-most passing yards in 2016 while throwing for the third-most yards per attempt (8.1) among quarterbacks. Cousins ranked in the top six of Football Outsiders’ DVOA in the last two years and he finished No. 8 and No. 4, respectively, in Pro Football Reference’s adjusted net yards per attempt in ’15 and ’16. He’s also performed better than Raiders QB Derek Carr who just inked a five-year, $125MM deal. Cousins ranked fourth in Total QBR over 2015-2016 while Carr finished 26th.
Here’s more from D.C.:
- Redskins safety DeAngelo Hall turns 34 in November but it’s not a certainty that he’ll be with the team when that happens, Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com writes. Hall, a 14-year veteran, seems more likely to make the roster after accepting a pay cut earlier this summer, but it’s not a slam dunk since the team has younger and cheaper players that can be plugged into the secondary. Ultimately, I think Hall’s experience will keep him on the roster as a backup safety, especially with his reasonable $2.3MM base salary.
- Within the same piece, Tandler also implies that backup quarterback Colt McCoy could actually step up to replace Cousins as the Redskins‘ starter next year if Cousins is no longer in the picture. McCoy, 31 in September, stepped in for Cousins’ as the starting QB in 2014 and had some strong performances. Of course, in 2015, Cousins emerged as the Redskins’ clear cut starter and he has not given McCoy an opening in the last two seasons. It’s too early to speculate about Washington’s plans for 2018 if Cousins is not retained, but it sounds like they might not have to turn to free agency or the draft to find a fill-in if Cousins is out of the picture.
AFC West Notes: Broncos, Charles, Chiefs
Some say that Jamaal Charles is not a lock to make the Broncos‘ roster, but the veteran says that he is ahead of schedule in his recovery from left knee surgery and that could be a good sign for him as he tries to lock down his spot this summer.
“I am doing everything. I have been cutting the last couple of days with the guys during the offseason workouts. I feel like the way I am cutting that I am back to the normal me, man. It feels good to be moving around again,” Charles told Troy Renck of Denver7. “I have been knowing this the whole offseason (that the knee was fine). Nobody can take nothing away from me except God when my time is up. I am still 30 years old. I still have a lot of special stuff to do.”
Charles has appeared in just eight games over the past two seasons thanks to knee issues. As shown on Roster Resource, the Broncos also have C.J. Anderson, Devontae Booker, Juwan Thompson, and sixth-round pick De’Angelo Henderson on the RB depth chart. The presence of fullback Andy Janovich may also dictate the makeup of Denver’s RB group.
Here’s more from the AFC West:
- The Chiefs were always disorganized under John Dorsey but the chaos became more noticeable once Chris Ballard left for the Colts, Albert Breer of The MMQB hears. “It wasn’t dysfunction so much as it was decisions were being made that seemed to come out of nowhere,” one source said. “So that existed, but the people here weren’t aware that ownership was aware of it. … You look back now, how it worked out, and ownership was more aware that it didn’t need to be run that way.”
- The Chargers‘ revamped offensive line could alleviate pressure on quarterback Philip Rivers, USA Today’s Joe Curley writes. This year, the Bolts used three of their seven draft picks on offensive linemen after allowing the most pass pressures in the league over the past three seasons. The additions of Western Kentucky guard Forrest Lamp, Indiana guard Dan Feeney, and free agent tackle Russell Okung may allow Rivers more time to work with in the pocket. All three are projected to start on the Chargers’ new-look O-Line.
- A number of teams are showing interest in free agent linebacker Zach Orr, but the Raiders have not reached out.