HEADLINES

Month: March 2018

Latest On Allen Robinson’s Market

March 11th, 2018 at 4:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

PFR’s No. 1 wide receiver available, Allen Robinson will be set to see a bevy of offers once the tampering window opens on Monday.

While Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports the Jaguars would love to retain the wideout they didn’t opt to use the franchise tag on, they will have immense competition. The Browns and Bears may be the two most aggressive pursuers, per La Canfora, but the Ravens and Panthers are also in the mix for the fifth-year receiver.

The Ravens missed out on a Jarvis Landry trade and may be set to revamp their receiving corps. The Panthers just traded for Torrey Smith. Neither of these teams can compete with the Bears or Browns in terms of cap space, with the Panthers sitting at less than $25MM and the Ravens at barely $4MM. JLC describes Baltimore and Carolina as expressing interest but maybe not on the level of Cleveland and Chicago’s.

Cleveland did add Landry and has outside receivers in Josh Gordon and Corey Coleman. However, neither of those players were acquired by this regime and, with Gordon’s rampant off-field issues and Coleman’s injury struggles, it’s possible the front office wants more help in addition to Landry. The Bears have a bigger need at wideout after its previous corps struggled with injuries and production. The Browns hold more than $82MM in cap space, and the Bears are sitting on just more than $50MM.

Robinson doesn’t have the cleanest track record as far as staying on the field, but his dominant 2015 season (14 touchdowns, 1,400 air yards) understandably would have teams teeming with interest.

5 Key Stories: 3/4/11 – 3/11/11

March 11th, 2018 at 3:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

Seahawks say goodbye to two Super Bowl stalwarts: Starters in each of Seattle’s most recent Super Bowl appearances and cornerstone components in the franchise’s defining run this decade, Michael Bennett and Richard Sherman are now on other teams. The Seahawks shipped Bennett to the Eagles, doing so despite possibly receiving a better offer from their Super Bowl XLIX opponent. On Friday, the team released Sherman after seven seasons, and the three-time All-Pro cornerback landed on his feet quickly by signing with the 49ers. The Seahawks set a high price for Earl Thomas but may well keep the safety in the fold.

Browns dominate weekend news cycle: The Browns launched a blitz of roster maneuvers beginning Friday afternoon, when they traded for both Jarvis Landry and Tyrod Taylor. In addition to adding two presumptive Week 1 offensive starters, Cleveland jettisoned its previous Week 1 centerpiece by sending DeShone Kizer to Green Bay for Damarious Randall, with draft choices swapped as well. If that wasn’t enough, John Dorsey kept the Browns-Patriots pipeline flowing by trading Danny Shelton on Saturday morning. All the while, the Browns retained all five of their first- or second-round picks in the upcoming draft. The Browns outmuscled the Ravens, Titans and Jets for Landry and prevented the Broncos or Cardinals from Taylor access.

Rams continue aggressive offseason: While the Browns controlled a 24-hour period’s worth of headlines, the Rams have doing this for weeks. After agreeing to acquire Marcus Peters and trading away Robert Quinn recently, the Rams were back in action this week. They first agreed to ship Alec Ogletree to the Giants for a draft pick then agreed to send the Broncos a fifth-rounder for the rights to Aqib Talib. With the team earlier that day signing Sam Shields, it looks like Los Angeles will have nearly an entirely new cornerback corps next season. The Broncos were also negotiating with the 49ers, but Talib nixed an agreement with San Francisco. That could well have led the 49ers to enter the Sherman race.

Mike Evans breaks ground: The 2014 draft class had notably not seen a first-round pick sign an extension with his team, but the Buccaneers became the trail blazers here. Tampa Bay agreed to terms on a massive re-up with its No. 1 wide receiver. The former Texas A&M standout signed a five-year, $82.5MM deal with the Bucs, and $55MM will come in guarantees. Evans will count $18.25MM toward Tampa Bay’s cap this year.

Tag deadline keeps more off market: Following in the Redskins’ footsteps, the Steelers placed the franchise tag on Le’Veon Bell for a second straight year. No other member of this year’s tag class is a two-timer. However, the Rams made the 11th-hour decision to tag Lamarcus Joyner instead of Sammy Watkins. And the Bears, a year after turning down Kyle Fuller‘s fifth-year option, placed the lesser-used transition tag on the breakout corner. Demarcus Lawrence signed his franchise tender earlier this week as well. Bell and the Steelers could again be set for a lengthy staredown, but Bell continues to express optimism and said he will not partake in a holdout that lasts past Week 1.

Kirk Cousins No Longer Planning Visits?

March 11th, 2018 at 3:36pm CST by Sam Robinson

With the legal tampering period less than 24 hours away, Kirk Cousins’ destination is the centerpiece storyline of free agency. And it’s possible this process could wrap up quickly.

Once expected to take at least one visit, Cousins may now use the traditional route for high-value free agents and agree to a deal without trekking to facilities. Diana Russini of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter) the 29-year-old quarterback is not planning to make any visits.

Russini adds that it may be down to a three-team race. The Vikings, Jets and Cardinals are “lobbying hard” and putting together recruiting pitches and video presentations for Cousins. Russini does not mention the Broncos here. Denver currently holds more cap space than Arizona but lags behind Minnesota and New York, and it’s possible John Elway could opt for a cheaper option despite the franchise being heavily linked to Cousins throughout the offseason.

These four teams were mentioned as the finalists for Cousins last weekend, and earlier this week, it was reported Cousins had not ruled out anyone just yet. The thinning-out process may be commencing in this high-stakes race.

PFR Originals: 3/4/18 – 3/11/18

March 11th, 2018 at 2:44pm CST by Sam Robinson

The original content and analysis produced by the PFR staff during the past week:

Extra Points: NFL, NFLPA, Browns, QBs

March 11th, 2018 at 1:21pm CST by Ben Levine

The NFL has sent out a memo to teams regarding tampering and trades. Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com obtained that memo, noting that it specifically relates to “granting players permission to shop themselves to a new team via trade.” Most importantly, the NFL noted that permission must be obtained from the player’s current team before talks with another organization can take place.

“Under no circumstances should a new club rely upon any written or oral representation by a player or his agent that he has received permission to enter into discussions for a trade for contract,” the memo states. “Nor should a new club rely upon a letter from the employer club to the agent or player granting such permission since employer clubs typically reserve the right to withdraw permission at any time, and may have already done so. Permission must be received directly from the employer club.”

As Florio notes, it’s uncertain if this is just a yearly reminder or if it “arises from a specific incident that has occurred in recent weeks.” If that’s the case, Florio expects the respective team to be disciplined.

Here’s the latest from around the league on the eve of the tampering window.

  • The NFL Players Association has announced (via Twitter) that veteran offensive lineman Eric Winston has been re-elected as union president. This will be the 34-year-old’s third two-year term. Florio points out that Winston may not even play next year, but he was eligible to run in 2018 since he played last season. If Winston doesn’t play in 2019, he won’t be eligible to run in 2020. Florio observes that this is an important note, as the current labor deal is likely to expire after 2020. In that case, there may be a new president in place when the next work stoppage arises.
  • Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller talked to one league executive who believes the Browns recent moves indicate that general manager John Dorsey is in control of the organization instead of head coach Hue Jackson. “The Browns trading for Tyrod [Taylor] and not signing [A.J.] McCarron tells you who’s running the show,” the executive said (via Twitter).
  • As part of a recent series, former NFL agent (and current CBS Sports writer) Joel Corry analyzed what contracts top free agents should pursue. For quarterbacks, Corry focuses on a five-year, $150MM contract ($100MM guaranteed) for Kirk Cousins, a three-year, $85MM deal ($60MM guaranteed) for Drew Brees, and three-year, $50MM deal ($34MM guaranteed) for McCarron.

Latest On Le’Veon Bell, Steelers Negotiations

March 11th, 2018 at 12:54pm CST by Ben Levine

The Steelers officially placed the franchise tag on running back Le’Veon Bell earlier this week, but it sounds like the two sides are progressing towards a long-term deal. ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler reports that the Steelers increased their offer recently and are close to Bell’s requested number.

The running back is reportedly seeking a deal that will pay him around $14.5MM annually. That’s similar value to the $14.544MM franchise tag, although an extension would obviously come with long-term security. Devonta Freeman is currently the game’s highest-paid running back at $8.25MM per year, a mark that Bell is looking to surpass.

Earlier this week, we continued to hear that the Steelers and Bell weren’t close to a new deal, with the running back still threatening retirement if he didn’t receive his desired deal. The running back told Fowler that playing the running back position on one-year deals felt like “settling.” However, the running back also acknowledged that he’s thought about playing on the franchise tag for a second-straight season and hitting free agency in 2019. He admitted earlier this week that he doesn’t want to miss any games, and he’s willing to bet on himself in order to secure that big payday.

“For me to get hurt [again] will take a lot,” Bell said. “I know when I’m 30 or 31 years old, I know I’ll be productive because I don’t depend solely on my athletic ability to get open and get yards. It’s more my mind. The Steelers know that.”

The 25-year-old had another productive season in 2017. He ultimately compiled 1,291 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on a career-high 321 carries. He also added another 85 receptions for 655 yards and two scores.

Lions Were Very Interested In Richard Sherman

March 11th, 2018 at 12:44pm CST by Rory Parks

Richard Sherman has dominated headlines over the past few days, and just yesterday, the former Seahawks star cut short what might have been a lengthy free agency tour by signing a three-year pact with the 49ers.

Earlier today, we learned that the Patriots did not reach out to Sherman before he agreed to sign with San Francisco, though New England was a team that Sherman indicated he would be interested in joining. The Lions were the only team other than the 49ers that Sherman had scheduled a visit with, and per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Detroit’s interest in the Stanford product was significant.

Citing a league source, Florio says the Lions were “strongly motivated” to pursue Sherman, and some believe that Sherman should have at least visited the Motor City if for no other reason than to leverage the 49ers into a better contract (as Florio pointed out in a separate piece, Sherman’s self-negotiated contract with the 49ers does not look especially player-friendly).

However, the 49ers may have told Sherman that if he left San Francisco without signing, then they would have pulled their offer entirely. As such, it seems that Sherman elected to take a sure thing rather than risk losing a contract that, in theory, could pay him $13MM per year. Of course, his joining the 49ers also includes the opportunity to torment his old team two times a year, and Florio suggests that could have played a role in his decision.

Florio also opines that Sherman could have landed a better deal by waiting until teams that hope to secure a starting-caliber cornerback in free agency failed to do so, or until after the draft had concluded, and that perhaps a one-year “prove it” contract might have been a better option. In any event, Florio believes the speed with which events unfolded suggests that Sherman did not do as well for himself as he could have.

Of course, it’s easy to second-guess a contract that a player negotiates without an agent, and only time will tell if Sherman acted too hastily. The Lions, meanwhile, will have to look elsewhere to upgrade their CB corps.

Aqib Talib Discusses Trade To Rams

March 11th, 2018 at 12:17pm CST by Rory Parks

Before the Broncos agreed to trade Aqib Talib to the Rams, they had a deal in place that would have sent him to the 49ers. However, Talib rejected that trade, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter), and he ended up with Los Angeles (San Francisco, of course, found a pretty nice consolation prize in Richard Sherman). 

Talib recently spoke with James Palmer of the NFL Network (video link), which marked the first time he publicly commented on the trade. In the interview, Talib said he wanted to remain in Denver but is excited about the “fourth quarter” of his playing career and about the opportunity to reunite with defensive coordinator Wade Phillips.

Given the amount of money that Denver had tied up at the cornerback position, Talib saw the writing on the wall and realized that his time as a Bronco was probably coming to an end, though he still hoped to stay with the club. He said, “I had established real friendships [in Denver]. Robe (Bradley Roby), Chris [Harris] — they’re my guys. Von [Miller], Stew (Darian Stewart). I established real friends there…It wasn’t an issue where I wanted to get out of there. There’s no reason to want to get out of there. That’s a great organization. But it’s a business. We had too much talent on the backend [of the defense].” 

He did indicate that, if he had to be traded, he was happy to be traded to the Rams (previous reports indicated that if Denver wanted to move on from him, he would prefer to be released so he could become a free agent, and in that scenario, he would have been interested in rejoining the Patriots). He did not comment on his decision to nix the Broncos-49ers trade, though he did say that there was never any issue between him and embattled Broncos head coach Vance Joseph.

Talib will fly to Los Angeles tonight and take a physical tomorrow morning. If all goes well, the trade will be made official on Wednesday.

Credit to Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post for her recap of the Talib-Palmer interview.

AFC East Notes: Jets, Pats, Shelton

March 11th, 2018 at 11:17am CST by Rory Parks

The Jets, armed with $90MM of salary cap space, are of course prepared to make a major push for this year’s Holy Grail of free agents, Kirk Cousins. But Gang Green has plenty of needs to fill outside of quarterback, and GM Mike Maccagnan is making no bones about his team’s anticipated activity level when free agency opens this week. Maccagnan said at the scouting combine, “Obviously we’ll be very active on the first day [of free agency] in terms of the higher profile guys. Everybody is well aware we have quite a bit of cap space to work with. There are quite a few players we’re interested in” (via Brian Costello of the New York Post).

Per Costello, the Jets are poised to re-sign Josh McCown if they fall short in their pursuit of Cousins. The team also needs upgrades at running back, center, and cornerback. Wide receiver and inside linebacker could also be positions that New York targets.

Now let’s take a look at a few more notes from the AFC East:

  • Dion Lewis‘ abilities as a runner and receiver allowed the Patriots to run all sorts of formations in 2017, but it is widely believed that he will not be back in New England in 2018. Fellow free agent Jerick McKinnon, who has thrived in a similar role in Minnesota, could be a logical replacement, per Phil Perry of NBCSports.com. However, even though McKinnon will not break the bank, Perry thinks it is more likely that the Pats re-sign Rex Burkhead and address their RB needs in the draft.
  • Ben Volin of the Boston Globe tweets that the newly-acquired Danny Shelton will count for $2.03MM against the Patriots‘ cap in 2018 (which matches his base salary). As we learned yesterday, New England will have to decide whether to exercise Shelton’s fifth-year option, which has a projected value of roughly $7MM, by early May. The Browns, meanwhile, will be saddled with about $1.7MM in dead money as a result of the trade, and Mike Reiss of ESPN.com says the 2018 fifth-round pick the Patriots received in the Shelton swap is expected to be Cleveland’s lower pick in the round, No. 159 overall. Reiss adds that New England, which shipped a 2019 third-rounder to the Browns, could recoup a third-round pick in next year’s draft through the compensatory system.
  • In the same piece linked above, Reiss says the Patriots will not stray from their usual financial discipline in their efforts to re-sign Danny Amendola, but given Amendola’s impressive 2017 campaign, he says other teams may view him as a pure No. 3 wideout instead of the No. 3/4 option with a limited workload that he has been with the Pats (and those teams could offer to pay him accordingly). As such, Amendola — who has taken pay cuts to remain with New England in the past — could have a harder-than-expected decision to make this month.
  • Reiss also sees Titans LB Avery Williamson as a “sleeper” target for the Patriots when free agency opens in a couple of days. Williamson is in his prime and gives New England the type of off-the-line LB it is looking for.
  • We learned earlier today that the Dolphins continue to contemplate moving on from Ndamukong Suh, though it makes more sense for the team to either retain him — perhaps with a restructured contract — or trade him than it does to simply cut him.

Browns Considering RB Saquon Barkley With First Pick?

March 11th, 2018 at 10:34am CST by Ben Levine

Following the Browns’ assortment of moves late last week, Bleacher Report’s Mike Freeman believes the organization has made it clear who they’ll select with the top-overall pick in the upcoming draft. After having added quarterback Tyrod Taylor, team executives and coaches believe the Browns are now eyeing Penn State running back Saquon Barkley with the first-overall pick.

According to Freeman, much of this sentiment is attributed to Taylor, who many believe is “far more talented than he’s give credit for.” Furthermore, since the Browns have the luxury of picking both first and fourth, they could opt for Barkley with the top pick and still take a top-tier quarterback with their second selection. While selecting a running back first overall isn’t considered optimal value, Freeman notes that general manager John Dorsey is an “old-school football man,” meaning he might ignore this modern mindset.

Another team official suggested that the Browns could alternatively shop the first-overall selection and acquire multiple picks. Freeman is also hearing that Cleveland could still select a quarterback with the first pick and then take North Carolina State defensive end Bradley Chubb with their next selection.

With Taylor, Jarvis Landry, and Josh Gordon on the roster, the Browns already look like they’ll have a much-improved offense in 2018. Of course, adding Barkley would only provide the organization with another intriguing weapon. The running back had another standout campaign in 2017, running for 1,271 yards and 18 touchdowns on 217 carries. He also added another 54 receptions for 632 yards and three scores. Currently, the Browns are rostering five running backs, including Duke Johnson, Matt Dayes, Darius Jackson, Kelvin Taylor, and Josh Rounds.

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