2018 March - Pro Football Rumors

Giants Acquire LB Alec Ogletree From Rams

March 7th, 2018 at 2:59pm CST by Zachary Links

The Rams are trading linebacker Alec Ogletree to the Giants, a league source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The deal will see Ogletree and the Rams’ 2019 seventh-rounder go to the G-Men in exchange for a fourth-round pick and sixth-round pick.

Thanks to the extension he signed last fall, Ogletree is under contract through 2021. The Rams probably didn’t expect to part ways with him so soon even that the deal included $18MM in full guarantees with $33MM in cash flow over the first three years. L.A. is moving on from him, partially due to financial constraints, but the Giants believe they’re acquiring a quality playmaker on D.

Ogletree, a former first-round pick, started in all 15 of his games last season and racked up 95 tackles and two sacks. The advanced metrics have never been fond of him, but those who have watched him play disagree with the analytics.

Linebacker was one of the Giants’ biggest areas of need this offseason, particularly with Akeem Ayers, Jonathan Casillas, Mark Herzlich, Devon Kennard, Keenan Robinson, and Kelvin Sheppard all headed towards free agency. Last year, the Giants’ run defense sagged and opposing tight ends had their way across the middle of the field. The Giants are hoping that Ogletree’s presence will help in both areas.

The acquisition of Ogletree gives new defensive coordinator James Bettcher a big-time weapon to work with. Ogletree spent much of his career in a 4-3 scheme, but he transitioned to a 3-4 set under Wade Phillips last year, similar to Bettcher’s. It’s worth noting, however, that Ogletree didn’t cleanly fit into 3-4, as Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com (Twitter link) writes.

This marks the latest deal in what has been a busy offseason for the Rams. In recent weeks, L.A. has acquired cornerback Marcus Peters from the Chiefs and shipped defensive end Robert Quinn to the Dolphins.

The Rams were not expected to part ways with Ogletree, but it’s a logical move for cap reasons. Moving Ogletree may allow the Rams to hold on to linebacker Mark Barron and re-sign wide receiver Sammy Watkins. There’s also the outside chance that the Rams find space to retain cornerback Trumaine Johnson and the extra breathing room could help the team in their bid to eventually extend Todd Gurley, Aaron Donald, and Jared Goff.

Per league rules, the trade will not become official until March 14.

Falcons, Andy Levitre Restructure Deal

March 7th, 2018 at 2:06pm CST by Zachary Links

Andy Levitre is staying put in Atlanta. The Falcons have agreed to a restructured contract with the standout guard, a person familiar with the negotiations tells D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Levitre was set to enter the year with an $8.375MM cap number. He’s accepted a base salary reduction from $7MM to a fully guaranteed $3.5MM, while his salary cap charge will drop from $8.375MM to $5.875MM, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Levitre, 32 in May, has been one of the league’s better guards since entering the league in 2009. In 2017, he graded out as one of the 20 best players at his position in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics. He started every game since joining the Falcons in 2015 until he suffered a torn triceps late last year. He returned in Week 17, but he landed on IR after re-aggravating the injury.

Had he been released, Levitre would have profiled as one of the very best interior lineman on this year’s open market. For a look at those who are available, check out PFR’s rankings of the top offensive free agents by position.

Seahawks To Meet With Brian Cushing

March 7th, 2018 at 1:59pm CST by Zachary Links

Free agent linebacker Brian Cushing will meet with the Seahawks on Wednesday, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). This could be the start of a reunion for Cushing and Pete Carroll, who served as his head coach at USC.

Cushing comes with question marks, including two career PED violations, the most recent of which cost him ten games in 2017. He has also struggled with knee issues that sidelined him in 2012 and 2013. Still, he was a significant contributor for the Texans in 2015 and 2016.

Cushing started all 104 regular season games he played with the Texans over the course of nine seasons with the team. Despite his achievements, the aforementioned bans and injuries will hamper his market. We have Cushing ranked as just the 12th best linebacker in this year’s class, a group that is topped by Nigel Bradham, NaVorro Bowman, Zach Brown, Preston Brown, and Anthony Hitchens.

He may prove to be a cost-effective addition to the Seahawks who are working to bolster their front seven in the wake of Wednesday’s Michael Bennett trade. The Bennett deal might not be the team’s only major shakeup today as they are also set to meet with Richard Sherman to discuss his future.

Seahawks Trade Michael Bennett To Eagles

March 7th, 2018 at 1:23pm CST by Zachary Links

Trade alert! The Seahawks are sending defensive end Michael Bennett and a seventh-round pick to the Eagles for a fifth-round pick and wide receiver Marcus Johnson, sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Facebook link). Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter) first reported that Bennett was Philadelphia-bound.

Bennett has been the subject of trade speculation for months now and the Falcons were among the teams to express interest in acquiring him recently. The return for him may seem underwhelming given his ability, but his market was suppressed by his contract, which still has three seasons and $26MM left.

The Seahawks’ loss is now the Eagles’ gain. Bennett didn’t have his best season in 2017, but he did earn a third Pro Bowl nod as he registered 8.5 sacks. His inside pass rush ability helped to propel Seattle to the Super Bowl in back-to-back seasons and he’ll look to do more of the same for the defending champs. The Eagles project to start a defensive line of Bennett, Cox, Derek Barnett, and Brandon Graham, and that’s as good of a D-Line as you’ll find in the NFL.

After acquiring Bennett, the Eagles may explore a potential trade of defensive end Vinny Curry, Schefter tweets. The Eagles like Curry, but his cap number for 2018 is a bit too pricey given their limited amount of room.

The Bennett deal opens up roughly $2.2MM in cap space for the Seahawks, though they’re still saddled with about $5.2MM in dead money. The trade also helped Seattle escape the $3MM bonus he was due later this month and freed them of the future seasons left on his deal. The Eagles now assume that contract, which has Bennett under control through the 2020 season.

Meanwhile, the Seahawks gain an insurance policy in the event that Paul Richardson leaves in free agency. Given the buzz surrounding him, it’s very possible that they’ll lose him on the open market. Enter Johnson, who has posted a 40-yard-dash time of 4.36 seconds in the past. He doesn’t have a stat line that comes close to Richardson (he had just five grabs for 45 yards last season), but his speed could allow him to fill a similar role in Seattle.

Cardinals Re-Sign LS Aaron Brewer

March 7th, 2018 at 1:21pm CST by Zachary Links

Free agency is one week away, but Aaron Brewer won’t be among those exploring the open market. The Cardinals announced a new four-year deal for the long snapper on Wednesday.

Brewer’s contract is worth $4.15MM in total, and contains $620K guaranteed, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link). His new $1.038MM annual salary will now rank 13th among NFL long snappers, and represents a steep pay raise from his previous average of $768K.

“I met my fiancée here,” Brewer said of Arizona in a press release. “I’m from San Diego and it’s really close. They gave me an opportunity this last time. I’m happy to be here.”

The Cardinals will bring back their special teams core in 2018 with kicker Phil Dawson, punter Andy Lee and Brewer all under contract. They’ll still have to address 21 other free agents (18 of which are unrestricted), including cornerback Justin Bethel, wide receivers John Brown and Jaron Brown, and edge rusher Kareem Martin.

Richard Sherman, Seahawks Discuss Future

March 7th, 2018 at 1:10pm CST by Zachary Links

Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman has been the subject of trade speculation this offseason. We may soon get a sense of what is in store for him. Sherman is scheduled to meet with coach Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider to discuss his future, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter).

This “meeting” may not take place in person, however. Pelissero reports that the two sides will meet on Wednesday, but ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link) hears that Sherman is in transit to NFLPA meetings in Las Vegas, which begin on Thursday. Any talks regarding Sherman’s future will take place while the veteran is in Vegas, according to Schefter.

Sherman has been wishing teammates farewell over the past 24 hours, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter), though nothing has been set in stone yet. Jeremy Lane seemed to hint at receiving a goodbye text from Sherman on Twitter, but No. 25 told Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter) that he’s “not sure what that’s about.”

In any case, it’s clear that Sherman’s Seattle future is in flux. The Seahawks can save $11MM by parting ways with Sherman, but he’d have to gain medically clearance before being traded. Sherman says that he should be back on the field by June after having surgeries to fix his Achilles as well as a bone spur (Twitter link via Pelissero). With free agency just around the corner, an outright release cannot be ruled out for one of the league’s most prominent corners.

Sherman ranked as the 33rd-best CB in the league in 2017 this year, per Pro Football Focus. His 82.7 overall score was solid, but it is also a career-low for him. His ruptured Achilles tendon in November is also a concern and the Seahawks might not be able to justify keeping him at his current cost. A pay cut would make some sense here, but one has to wonder if Sherman’s pride would be a barrier.

Bengals Meet With DL Chris Baker

March 7th, 2018 at 11:44am CST by Zachary Links

The Bengals hosted free agent defensive lineman Chris Baker for a visit this week, according to Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The visit was first reported by Chick Hernandez of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link).

Baker, 31 in October, inked a three-year, $15.75MM deal with the Buccaneers last offseason. Last month, they terminated the deal in order to save $4.875MM against the cap.

Baker did not perform up to the Bucs’ expectations as he had just half a sack in 2017 and grading as just the No. 96 defensive tackle among 122 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus. The Bengals are wondering if Baker can get back to his 2016 play, a year in which he ranked 18th on PFF’s list of interior defenders. Looking at the positives, Baker had 10.5 sacks between 2015 and 2016 and even though he struggled last year, he started 16 games for the first time in his career.

Baker currently ranks as our No. 11 ranked interior defender, ahead of Kyle Williams, Dominique Easley, Haloti Ngata, and Alan Branch.

Steelers’ Antonio Brown Restructures Deal

March 7th, 2018 at 11:34am CST by Zachary Links

Antonio Brown has agreed to restructure his contract with the Steelers, according to his latest Instagram story. The Drew Rosenhaus client will have his 2018 salary fully guaranteed in a move that will give him additional security while freeing up some additional cap room for the team.

Pittsburgh has created $9.7MM in cap space by reworking Brown’s deal, tweets Tom Pelissero of NFL.com. That means the Steelers converted Browns’s entire $6MM roster bonus and all but $915K of his 2018 base salary into a signing bonus.

Brown, the league’s most talented wide receiver, inked an extension with Pittsburgh in February of 2017. The four-year, $68MM extension made him the highest-paid receiver of all-time on a yearly basis with an average annual value of $17MM. Brown’s signing bonus and reduced 2017 salaries made up the only guaranteed portions of the pact, so the 29-year-old (30 in July) was amenable to having his 2018 pay locked down.

Brown was as fearsome as ever in 2017 as he caught 101 passes for a league-leading 1,533 yards with nine touchdowns. After yet another spectacular season, Brown earned his sixth career Pro Bowl selection and fourth consecutive First-Team All-Pro nod. In his Instagram video, Rosenhaus does a celebratory toast with Brown to celebrate his future first ballot Hall of Fame induction. You won’t find anyone who will argue with that.

The Steelers have one of the tightest cap situations in the NFL this offseason, but Brown’s restructure should help them in their quest to extend Le’Veon Bell and address other needs in free agency.

Extra Points: Draft, Nelson, Price, Cap

March 7th, 2018 at 10:19am CST by Zachary Links

A quick look around the NFL:

Some teams consider guard Quenton Nelson to be top overall player in this year’s draft, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. He’s not int he mix to go No. 1 overall, but his tape has impressed scouts around the league. Nelson is widely expected to be a top ten pick, particularly after a strong showing in Indianapolis.
Ohio State center Billy Price is expected to be sidelined for four months after undergoing successful surgery on his “incomplete pec tear,” a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Price should be ready for the start of training camp, so it’s possible that he could still be a first-round pick.
The NFL set the 2018 salary cap at $177.2MM, and while that number fell short of the high end of recent projections, the league and the NFL players association have agreed to place more money in the NFL’s player performance pool, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The player performance pool, which does not affect the salary cap, is designed to divert extra money to low-paid players who contribute on a regular basis. Last year, the pool amounted to $3.995MM per team, but that figure will increase to $4.415MM per club in 2017, as Ben Volin of the Boston Globe tweets.

Bucs Exercise Options For Dotson, Conte

March 7th, 2018 at 10:07am CST by Zachary Links

The Buccaneers will pick up the one-year option for 2018 on the contracts for tackle Demar Dotson, safety Chris Conte, and defensive back Josh Robinson, according to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter).

Dotson played nearly every offensive snap (97.1%) for Tampa last year until he was placed on IR in late November. He had a tremendous year, grading out as the league’s No. 7 ranked tackle, per Pro Football Focus. A former undrafted free agent, Dotson has been with the Bucs since the 2009 season but didn’t become a starter until 2012. He has come on strong in recent years and he’s well worth the $4.6MM cap hit for Tampa Bay. The team also has him under control for 2019 when he is slated to carry a $4.85MM cap hit.

Conte played in all 16 games last year, starting 14. He didn’t set the world on fire as he was ranked No. 57 at his position by PFF, but his option also wasn’t pricey. The Bucs will pay $125K to keep him on board to go along with his $2.25MM base, giving him a total of $2.375MM for the coming year.