HEADLINES

Month: March 2020

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/17/20

March 17th, 2020 at 6:24pm CST by Zachary Links

Tuesday’s restricted free agent and exclusive rights free agent tender decisions will be posted below. Deals will be updated throughout the day.

RFAs

Tendered at second-round level: 

Tendered at original-round level:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

Panthers To Re-Sign Tre Boston

March 17th, 2020 at 6:08pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Tre Boston is staying in Carolina, and he’s finally getting the multi-year deal he’s been seeking. The Panthers are giving the safety a three-year deal worth $18MM, his agent Drew Rosenhaus told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Schefter notes that Boston will get a whopping $9.5MM in the first year of the contract. Boston has been a solid starting safety for a while now, but since he isn’t considered to be in the top-tier, it’s been tough for him to get a long-term commitment. Last offseason he waited until July to sign with the Panthers on a one-year, $3MM deal after he was unsatisfied with the initial offers he got.

The year before he did the same thing, waiting until July to sign with the Cardinals on a one-year, $1.5MM deal. He’s had to bet on himself, and it finally paid off. This past year he started all 16 games for the Panthers, racking up 11 passes defended and three interceptions, helping to turn around a suddenly resurgent secondary.

Boston started his career in Carolina, so it’s fitting they’re the ones who ultimately rewarded him. A fourth-round pick of the Panthers back in 2014, he spent three years with them before being waived and latching on with the Chargers. He started 15 games for the Chargers and had five interceptions, but still failed to generate much of a market.

Contract Details: Cooper, Hargrave, Littleton

March 17th, 2020 at 6:06pm CST by Marc Delucchi

Jonathan Bostic, (Washington): two-years, $5MM, $1.75MM guaranteed; $1.25MM signing bonus; salaries 2020: $960k ($500k guaranteed), 2021: $1.69MM; $500k roster bonus in 2020, $200k in non-guaranteed weekly roster bonuses in 2020, $400k in non-guaranteed weekly roster bonuses in 2021, an additional $800k in annual incentives available as well, according to John Keim of ESPN.

Amari Cooper, (Cowboys): five-years, $100MM deal, $60MM guaranteed; $10MM signing bonus; salaries 2020: $10MM (fully guaranteed), 2021: $20MM (fully guaranteed), 2022: $20MM (guaranteed for injury until March 2022), 2023: $20MM, 2024: $20MM, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com.

Tyeler Davison, (Falcons): three-years, $12MM, $4.55MM guaranteed; $3.64MM signing bonus; salaries 2020: $910k (fully guaranteed), 2021: $3.2MM, 2022: $3.45MM; $200k in non-guaranteed weekly roster bonuses in 2020, $250k in non-guaranteed weekly roster bonuses in 2021, $350k in non-guaranteed weekly roster bonuses in 2022, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.

George Fant, (Jets): three-years, $27.3MM, $8.85MM guaranteed; $3MM signing bonus; salaries 2020: $4.6MM (fully guaranteed), 2021: $8MM, 2022: $9.25MM; $1.25MM guaranteed roster bonus in 2020, $400k non-guaranteed weekly roster bonuses from 2020-2022, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN.

Javon Hargrave, (Eagles): three-years, $39MM, $26MM guaranteed; $11.75MM signing bonus; salaries 2020: $1MM (fully guaranteed), 2021: $12.75MM (fully guaranteed), 2022: $12.75MM; $250k workout bonus in 2022, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.

Cory Littleton, (Raiders): three-years, $35.25MM, $22MM guaranteed; salaries 2020: $11MM (fully guaranteed), 2021: $5.5MM (fully guaranteed), 2022: $11MM; guaranteed $5.5MM 2021 roster bonus, non-guaranteed $500k weekly roster bonuses in 2020-2022, $250k workout bonus in 2020-2022, $250k annual Pro Bowl incentive, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.

Levine Toilolo, (Giants): two-years, $6.2MM, $3.25MM guaranteed; salaries 2020: $1.225MM (fully guaranteed), 2021: $2.925MM; guaranteed $2MM 2020 roster bonus, $25k annual workout bonus, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle.

 

 

 

 

Browns Exploring Trade For Vikings S Anthony Harris

March 17th, 2020 at 5:58pm CST by Ben Levine

The Browns are exploring a trade for Vikings safety Anthony Harris, reports Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. It would take at least a third-rounder to get a deal done, “and probably a second.”

The 28-year-old was slapped with the franchise tag on Monday, but there were whispers that the Vikings were going to try to tag-and-trade the defensive back. Harris is set to make $11.44MM next season. As Cabot points out, the Browns have the ammo to get a deal done. The team currently owns one second-rounder (#41) and a pair of thirds (#74, #97).

Harris has a natural connection to Cleveland, as he played under Browns pass game coordinator and defensive backs coach Jeff Howard in Minnesota. Browns head coach (and former Vikings offensive coordinator) Kevin Stefanski is also familiar with the long-time Vikings safety.

The former undrafted free agent has evolved into a starter in Minnesota, as he started a career-high 14 games in 2019. He finished the campaign with 60 tackles, 11 passes defended, and six interceptions.

Tom Brady Expected To Sign With Bucs

March 17th, 2020 at 5:42pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

It looks like the Tom Brady sweepstakes are coming to a close. The expectation is that Brady will sign with the Buccaneers, sources told Jeff Darlington and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Tampa’s offer is “roughly” $30MM annually, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets, although the duration is unclear.

Rapoport added that the Buccaneers have been confident all day about landing him. It’s not at all unexpected given today’s developments, but it still is a wild conclusion to an unpredictable saga. A couple of years ago we got the first reports that Brady might want out of New England, but nobody at the time could’ve predicted it would end with him teaming up with Bruce Arians in Tampa Bay. It became clear in recent months that Brady leaving was a very real possibility, and earlier this morning the legendary quarterback announced he wouldn’t be back with the Patriots in 2020.

We heard just a little while ago that the Chargers were out of the running, which left the Bucs as the only known team aggressively pursuing Brady. The Raiders had been floated at various points, but they recently signed Marcus Mariota and the same report that had the Chargers out indicated Brady wanted to stay closer to his family on the east coast.

The Patriots were one of the best teams in the league last season, but it was mostly because of the defense and not the offense. Brady had one of his worst seasons statistically, averaging his lowest yards per attempt (6.8) since the 2002 season. The Pats were widely criticized for not providing him with enough weapons, and that won’t be an issue in Tampa.

The Bucs have arguably the best receiving duo in the league, with Chris Godwin and Mike Evans forming a matchup nightmare for any opposing secondary. Their defense also made major strides down the stretch last season under DC Todd Bowles, and they’ll now be considered an instant contender in 2020.

Brady spent 20 incredible years in New England, helping to create one of the most iconic dynasties in sports history. He’ll leave the Patriots at the age of 42, having won six Super Bowls with the team. We may never know exactly what happened the last few years, but it seems clear that Brady wanted a fresh start. His frustration with the offense was evident toward the end of last season, and it culminated in an embarrassing home loss to the Titans in the first round of the playoffs.

As for the Buccaneers, they’ll obviously be moving on from Jameis Winston, who they drafted first overall back in 2015. The game of quarterback musical chairs has almost ended, and there aren’t too many starting jobs left available for Winston to nab.

Browns To Acquire Broncos FB Andy Janovich

March 17th, 2020 at 5:40pm CST by Sam Robinson

Day 2 of the tampering period will produce a fullback trade. The Broncos have agreed to trade Andy Janovich to the Browns in exchange for a 2021 seventh-round pick, Mike Klis of 9News reports (on Twitter).

Janovich has been one of the league’s top fullbacks, but many NFL systems do not make use of this diminishing position. New Denver OC Pat Shurmur does not intend to use fullbacks regularly, per Klis, leading to the Broncos shipping Janovich out for little value.

While the Broncos extended Janovich in October of last year, he only played 13% of the team’s offensive snaps. With another new offensive coordinator set to take over, the fifth-year fullback will relocate to Cleveland. Janovich, 26, is under contract through the 2022 season.

Janovich will join Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt in the Browns’ backfield on Kevin Stefanski‘s first Cleveland offense.

Raiders Agree To Terms With Carl Nassib

March 17th, 2020 at 5:35pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Raiders are staying busy, this time bolstering their pass-rush. Las Vegas has agreed to terms with free agent defensive end Carl Nassib, Jerry McDonald of the Oakland Tribune tweets.

Nassib originally became widely known to football fans as a ‘Hardknocks’ star during training camp with the Browns in 2018 when they were featured on the hit HBO series. He was waived by Cleveland at final cuts, but was quickly claimed by Tampa Bay. He thrived with the Buccaneers, racking up 6.5 sacks that year. This past season he had six more in 14 games while playing around 55 percent of the defensive snaps.

It will be interesting to see what the terms are, but it’s likely that Vegas didn’t have to break the bank for him. Overall, it’s a nice under the radar signing. Nassib was originally a walk-on at Penn State, and played sparingly his first few years. He came out of nowhere to dominate in his senior season, racking up 15.5 sacks and winning the Hendricks Award for the nation’s top defensive end.

The Raiders have struggled to generate a consistent rush in recent years, and they had only 32 sacks as a team last season. They also agreed to terms with defensive tackle Maliek Collins Tuesday to further bolster the defensive front.

Jets To Sign OL Connor McGovern

March 17th, 2020 at 5:33pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Jets will make a splash to help their offensive line. They have agreed to terms with Connor McGovern, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News tweets.

McGovern, who played both center and guard in Denver, agreed to a three-year, $27MM deal, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). McGovern will receive $18MM fully guaranteed.

Gang Green was eyeing top guards Joe Thuney and Graham Glasgow, but the Patriots franchise-tagged the former and the Broncos nabbed the latter. The Broncos submitted an offer to keep McGovern but withdrew it after Glasgow signed. That will lead the former fifth-round Broncos pick to the Jets, who have been busy attempting to fortify their front.

McGovern graded as Pro Football Focus’ No. 11 center last season — well ahead of Jets options Ryan Kalil and Jonotthan Harrison. The elder of the NFL’s two Connor McGoverns, the ex-Mizzou lineman started 31 games over the past two seasons and helped Phillip Lindsay become the first UDFA in NFL history to begin his career with two 1,000-yard seasons.

While the Jets are likely not done, they have paid starter money to McGovern and tackle George Fant. They have also re-signed Alex Lewis at $6MM AAV, likely to play left guard. The Jets have been linked to tackles in the draft. Longtime right guard Brian Winters remains on the roster but is a candidate to be a cap casualty under new GM Joe Douglas.

Cowboys To Bring Back Sean Lee

March 17th, 2020 at 5:27pm CST by Sam Robinson

Despite the Cowboys bringing in a new coaching regime for the first time in 10 years, they will bring back one of the team’s leaders. Sean Lee and the Cowboys have agreed on a deal that will keep the linebacker in Dallas for an 11th season, according to Lee’s agent (Twitter link).

Lee will earn $4.5MM on a one-year deal, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). The longtime Cowboy cog will receive $2MM in full guarantees. This will be Lee’s age-34 season.

In February, Lee vowed not to retire. But the Cowboys at that point had not yet decided to bring him back. They have now, and Lee will return to his post as the veteran in Dallas’ linebacking corps.

While Lee himself has been injury-prone during his Cowboys tenure, he played a key role last season after Leighton Vander Esch‘s season-ending setback. Lee started 13 games and worked in a three-down role with Jaylon Smith. He made 86 tackles in Dallas’ disappointing 2019 season. Vander Esch is expected to be ready by training camp, but Lee will be back in uniform as a high-profile insurance policy.

Chargers Out Of Running For Tom Brady?

March 17th, 2020 at 5:09pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Momentum for Tom Brady going to the Buccaneers continues to build. The Chargers believe they are out of the running for the quarterback, according to Jim Trotter of NFL Network (Twitter link).

Everything we had heard indicated that the Chargers and Bucs were the two teams with strong offers on the table for Brady, and if the Chargers are out then there aren’t many other known suitors outside Tampa. In a different tweet, Trotter reports that Brady’s camp “led the Chargers to believe he is going to stay back East because of family considerations.” Obviously Brady’s family lives in the New England area, and Tampa would certainly be a lot closer than Los Angeles.

Many had speculated that Brady might choose the Chargers because Los Angeles would provide a better pivot for off-field ventures like the entertainment industry a la LeBron James and the Lakers, but that apparently wasn’t the case. The Raiders just agreed to terms with Marcus Mariota and they’re out West as well, which likely takes them off the table too.

At this point, it seems like it’ll either be the Buccaneers or a mystery team swooping in that we haven’t heard much reporting about. That’s not out of the question given how wild things have been this week, but as of right now Tampa seems to be considered the solid favorite. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network said when free agency opened that it was down to the Bucs, Chargers, and Patriots, and two of those teams have since been eliminated.

As for the Chargers, they’re in an interesting spot. They decided to let long-time quarterback Philip Rivers walk this offseason, and most of the top free agent passers are now off the board. They could turn their attention to the trade market and go after someone like Cam Newton, or they could focus on the draft where they could theoretically get Tua Tagovailoa or Justin Herbert with the sixth overall pick.

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