HEADLINES

Month: April 2018

Vikings Meet With CB Dontae Johnson

April 10th, 2018 at 3:35pm CST by Zachary Links

The Vikings hosted former 49ers cornerback Dontae Johnson on a free agent visit, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Johnson, a 2014 fourth round pick, started in 16 games for the Niners last season. 

Johnson served as a reserve for the first three years of his career, but stepped up into a larger role in 2017. Going by the advanced metrics, it wasn’t necessarily a success. The 26-year-old ranked near the bottom of Football Outsiders’ yards allowed per pass and success rate. Meanwhile, he graded out as the third worst qualified corner in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus, as he placed 118th out of 121 possible players.

The Vikings lost a supporting cornerback this offseason when Tramaine Brock signed with the Broncos. Marcus Sherels has been retained with a new deal, but the status of 39-year-old Terence Newman remains up in the air. If signed, Johnson would provide Minnesota with some depth in the secondary.

Contract Details: Patriots, Matthews, Eagles

April 10th, 2018 at 2:23pm CST by Zachary Links

Some details on recent free agent deals:

  • Jordan Matthews’ one-year deal with the Patriots is worth $1MM with $170K guaranteed, Ben Volin of The Boston Globe tweets. The deal includes an $90K guaranteed, a modest $790K salary, and a $130K offseason workout bonus. Matthews was hampered by injuries in 2017, but prior to that, he had three strong seasons with the Eagles, so he could prove to be a major value signing for New England.
  • New Eagles tight end Richard Rodgers signed a one-year deal worth $880K with $245K fully guaranteed, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM tweets.
  • Joe Webb‘s one-year deal with the Texans is for the minimum salary, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com tweets. With his salary at the league’s floor, it could negate him as an unrestricted free agent loss for the Bills and hurt their chance at scoring a compensatory pick.

NFC West Notes: Butler, Cardinals, Rams

April 10th, 2018 at 1:29pm CST by Zachary Links

Former Cowboys wide receiver Brice Butler says he signed with the Cardinals in part because of the presence of new quarterback Sam Bradford.

“Yeah it was part of it,” Butler told 105.3 FM The Fan. “Sam is a top quarterback in the league when he’s healthy. The whole thing for me in free agency was I had a few teams I thought would be a good fit for me to land if I didn’t stay in Dallas. Arizona was one of those teams. The biggest thing was who are they going to get at quarterback? When they got Sam I said, ‘OK, asterisk for Arizona. Great place to be.’ When it came down to it a few weeks later, finally got a chance to visit them, finally got in contact with them … So we ran with it.”

Here’s more from the NFC West:

  • Ndamukong Suh‘s deal with the Rams includes a $1MM incentive if he plays 65% of the snaps and the team wins two playoff games, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. If he reaches 65% of the snaps and the Rams make the playoffs, he’ll earn an extra $500K. With 65% of the snaps and one playoff win, Suh will see an additional $750K.
  • Notre Dame guard Quenton Nelson is a fit for the 49ers if he slips to No. 9 overall, but he is not the ideal guard for SF, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee opines. The 49ers are after a guard who can move while Nelson, a power blocker, struggled against speedy defenses at times, including a late season loss to Miami. The Bears, picking at No. 8, are believed to be eyeing Nelson, so the Niners probably won’t be faced with a question of whether or not to select him.
  • Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times would be “stunned” if the Seahawks end the 2018 draft with just the eight picks they currently have. He fully expects Seattle to trade down in an effort to fill multiple holes left by this year’s cap crunch.

Jets To Work Out Sam Darnold

April 10th, 2018 at 1:19pm CST by Zachary Links

The Jets will bring USC quarterback Sam Darnold in for a top 30 visit in the coming days, Albert Breer of The MMQB tweets. Darnold was not listed on the Jets’ schedule as of a couple of weeks ago, but they now have a meeting lined up. 

The Jets hold the third overall pick in the draft, but it would be a surprise if he slipped past the Browns (No. 1) and Giants (No. 2). If the Jets are really sold on Darnold, they could conceivably ponder another trade up to get within range for him. Alternatively, they could just be doing their due diligence in the event of a draft day surprise.

The Jets already sacrificed three second-round picks in order to vault up from No. 6 to No. 3 a move up to the top pick would cost them at least one future first-round choice. The Jets also didn’t engage the Giants in trade talks before swapping spots with the Colts, so it’s not likely that they’d be willing to make that move now.

The Bills, who have the necessary ammo to move into the top five, watched Darnold throw last week. The Giants and Browns have also auditioned the USC signal caller.

AFC East Rumors: Dolphins, Bills, Incognito

April 10th, 2018 at 12:53pm CST by Zachary Links

On Monday, it was reported that the Broncos and Dolphins agreed to a deal sending running back C.J. Anderson to Miami in exchange for right tackle Ja’Wuan James trade before Miami 86’d the deal. However, Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald (on Twitter) hears that the Dolphins did not want to make that deal and there was no such agreement in place. In any case, James remains on board as the Dolphins’ starting right tackle and the Broncos have since acquired Jared Veldheer from the Cardinals via trade.

Here’s more from the AFC East:

  • Bills guard Richie Incognito says that he is done playing football, but LeSean McCoy badly wants him to stay on board. On Instagram, the Buffalo running back offered up a $300K check if Incognito stays with the team and helps him reach 1,500 yards. It would be highly unorthodox – and possibly a violation of league rules – if Incognito were to take McCoy up on his offer. However, McCoy’s pitch illustrates Incognito’s importance to the team. The Bills may be compelled to offer Incognito a better deal to continue playing, though the guard’s latest comments indicate that he cannot be talked out of retirement.
  • The Bills are entitled to recover $2.15MM from Incognito if he really is done playing, Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (on Twitter) notes. That sum represents the $1.15MM 2018 signing bonus proration from his 2016 deal and the $1MM signing bonus in his recently renegotiated contract.
  • The Jets now have a whopping 17 wide receivers on the roster. Calvin Watkins of Newsday ran down every WR in the mix with a quick evaluation of each player’s chances of making the final cut.

Latest On Colin Kaepernick

April 10th, 2018 at 12:33pm CST by Zachary Links

On Tuesday, NFL lawyers will depose Colin Kaepernick in New York, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports writes. Kaep will become the first witness deposed by the NFL in his own complaint. 

No one knows for sure what the NFL will ask the former 49ers quarterback, but a league source tells Robinson that lawyers are likely to concentrate on Kaepernick’s mental outlook during the free agency period last March. Kaepernick says that he was blackballed from the league, but NFL attorneys will question whether he “corrupted his free agent market through a series of factors relating to football skills, contract expectations and motivation to play,” Robinson writes.

It’s expected that he’ll be asked whether he expected to be signed as a starter, what kind of salary he was seeking, and whether his injury history had diminished his skills. League lawyers may also ask him to produce his smoking gun, which would be concrete proof that teams or executives sought to keep him out of the game.

Although the questioning of Kaepernick is a major development in his collusion case, it’s not a sign that the end is near. In fact, Robinson hears that the collusion complaint could drag into 2019 with a number of league execs, owners, and team personnel left on the QB’s deposition list.

Richie Incognito Says He Will Follow Through On Retirement

April 10th, 2018 at 11:46am CST by Zachary Links

On Tuesday morning, Bills offensive lineman Richie Incognito indicated that he is considering retirement. His latest comments now suggest that it’s a done deal.

“It pisses me the [expletive] off. The contract and all that pissed me [off] and all that, but (retiring) has nothing to do with that,” Incognito said (Twitter link via Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News), which marks a shift from his previous stance that a pay raise could entice him to play one more season.

When asked whether there was a chance he’d change his mind, Incognito said, “Absolutely not.” Just hours earlier, Incognito said that he had until Sunday to figure out his football future, so it’s still a situation worth monitoring.

Incognito, fresh off of a third consecutive Pro Bowl appearance, agreed to take a pay cut for the 2018 season. Weeks later, he fired his agents via Twitter. On the surface, Incognito’s retirement threat looked to be an attempt to recoup that lost money. For his part, the veteran says that he is simply prioritizing his health over future earnings. Incognito told Carucci that his liver and kidneys are “shutting down,” so his best option might be to walk away from football.

Draft Rumors: Guice, Key, Ridley, Panthers

April 10th, 2018 at 11:30am CST by Zachary Links

LSU running back Derrius Guice has changed representation, going from the firm that represents rap star Kendrick Lamar to one headed up by Lil Wayne, as Darren Heitner of Forbes Magazine writes. Guice is the latest draft prospect to join Young Money APAA Sports, which also represents Texas linebacker Malik Jefferson. Thanks to a buyout of another firm late last year, the agency also has NFL players Devin McCourty, Duron Harmon, Lane Johnson, Jason McCourty and Seth Roberts in its stable.

Here’s more NFL Draft news:

  • Speaking of LSU, pass rusher Arden Key will visit with the Titans on Tuesday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. At No. 25 overall, the Titans could be in range for the athletic prospect.
  • Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley will visit with the Panthers on Wednesday after the team completes it’s trip to Washington D.C., according to Rapoport. Ridley recently met with the Cowboys and is widely projected to be a first round pick.
  • Iowa cornerback Josh Jackson has Top 30 visits with the Bills, Titans, and Buccaneers this week, Rapoport tweets.
  • Alabama defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick is visiting the 49ers this week, per Rapoport.
  • Memphis wide receiver Anthony Miller met with the Panthers on Monday, according to Rapoport.
  • Florida defensive tackle Taven Bryan, projected as a first-round pick, will have a dozen official visits to team facilities along with six individual workouts on campus, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. The Buccaneers hosted him on a visit last week, so he could stay in the Sunshine State. Bryan is the 24th best prospect in the draft, according to NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah.
  • The Lions have more pressing needs at running back, pass rusher, and on the interior offensive line, but they could consider safeties early in the draft. The Lions hosted Stanford’s Justin Reid on a top-30 visit last week, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press hears.

AFC North Notes: Steelers, Bell, Bengals

April 10th, 2018 at 11:05am CST by Zachary Links

Is Le’Veon Bell looking for $17MM/year? There have been rumblings about the running back looking for a salary equivalent to Antonio Brown‘s, but as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com understands it, that’s not quite the case. When asked earlier this offseason about how much he would need to take the field, the Steelers star said he wouldn’t take anything less than $14.5MM annually (the value of his franchise tender) over the course of a long-term deal. That answer implies that a deal could be reached for roughly $15MM/year, which may be more realistic.

Here’s more on Bell plus other news out of the AFC North:

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