HEADLINES

Month: June 2021

Jets Want Jamison Crowder To Take 50% Pay Cut

June 13th, 2021 at 10:04am CST by Rory Parks

We heard earlier this month that the Jets want slot receiver Jamison Crowder — who is entering the final year of his contract — to take a significant pay cut. Today, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports that New York wants to reduce Crowder’s 2021 salary by at least 50%.

The soon-to-be 28-year-old receiver is due to make a non-guaranteed $10MM this year, and the Jets want to pay him a maximum of $5MM instead. And it appears that Gang Green has plenty of leverage. At this point in the year, most teams don’t have a ton of money to spend, so it would be hard to imagine another club paying Crowder more than $5MM for the 2021 campaign. Plus, the Jets could clear over $10MM of cap space with a minimal dead money hit if they were to release Crowder, and New York reportedly feels comfortable with its receiving corps even without him in the picture.

According to Cimini, second-round rookie Elijah Moore — another slot receiver — was one of the best players on the field during OTAs, and fellow slot man Braxton Berrios also looked good. Of course, the Jets made a big-money free agent addition to the WR room in Corey Davis, and they also brought in Keelan Cole, so they’re content to play hardball with Crowder.

On the other hand, the team has plenty of cap space as is and will deploy rookie QB Zach Wilson under center. Even if there is some redundancy in the slot, it would be understandable if the Jets wanted to keep an established veteran like Crowder just in case Moore isn’t quite ready to shoulder the load. But since GM Joe Douglas doled out $80MM in guaranteed money in free agency, the club might prefer to save some cash, especially since it remains interested in free agent OT Morgan Moses (who recently visited with the Jets).

Cimini suggests that Crowder and the club could agree to a restructure, though such a maneuver wouldn’t preclude the Jets from trading Crowder if Moore continues to perform well in training camp and the preseason.

Malik Hooker Wants To Take More Visits

June 13th, 2021 at 9:06am CST by Rory Parks

Free agent safety Malik Hooker has taken visits with the Cowboys, Dolphins, and Steelers this offseason, but he is still looking for a new home. Dallas has added free agent Damontae Kazee, Miami selected Jevon Holland in the second round of the draft (though the ‘Fins did cut Bobby McCain after the draft), and while Pittsburgh didn’t do much to bolster its safety group, it will return starters Minkah Fitzpatrick and Terrell Edmunds.

At this point, those three clubs appear satisfied with their respective safety situations, because Hooker indicated during a recent interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio (via Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk) that he is hoping to visit with more teams before training camp opens at the end of July.

“There was a couple of teams I visited with that I thought highly of,” Hooker said. “Now, it’s just a matter of taking my time with it. Training camp’s next month, not next week, so I’ve got time to be able to still tune up things and still hopefully go on more visits to see what else teams are talking about. Maybe meet with some teams I’ve met with before hopefully.”

Hooker, whom the Colts selected in the first round of the 2017 draft, has shown plenty of promise in his pro career thus far. Unfortunately, he has also dealt with myriad injury problems. He missed more than half of his rookie season with a torn ACL, battled lesser ailments over the 2018-19 campaigns, and then suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in Week 2 of the 2020 season.

As a result, he understands that he will need to settle for a one-year, “prove-it” contract, though he is obviously hoping for a good scheme fit on a team that will give him a real opportunity to reestablish his value. With respect to his recovery, he said he feels capable of playing right now but still has “little stuff” to work on before he is 100%.

Pro Football Rumors Seeking Part-Time Writer

June 12th, 2021 at 6:53pm CST by Zachary Links

We’re looking to add a part-time contributor to the Pro Football Rumors writing team. The position pays on an hourly basis. Applicants must meet ALL of the following criteria:

  • Exceptional knowledge of all 32 NFL teams, with no discernible bias.
  • Knowledge of the salary cap and transaction-related concepts.
  • At least some college education.
  • Extensive writing experience, with professional experience and a background in journalism both strongly preferred.
  • Keen understanding of journalistic principles, ethics, and procedures. Completion of basic college-level journalism classes is strongly preferred.
  • Attention to detail — absolutely no spelling errors, especially for player and journalist names.
  • Ability to follow the site’s style and tone.
  • Ability to analyze articles and craft intelligent, well-written posts summing up the news in a few paragraphs. We need someone who can balance quick writing with thoughtful analysis. You must be able to add value to breaking news with your own insight, numbers, or links to other relevant articles.
  • Ability to use Twitter is crucial.
  • Strong weekend availability is crucial. You must be available to work between 1pm-4pm central time on Sundays and frequently be available to work between 5-11 pm CT on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
  • Flexibility. You must be available to work on short notice.

If you’re interested, email pfrapplications@gmail.com by June 17th and take a couple of paragraphs to explain why you qualify and stand out. Many will apply, so unfortunately we cannot respond to every applicant.

This Date In Transactions History: Jets Cut Eric Decker

June 12th, 2021 at 6:50pm CST by Zachary Links

Five years ago today, the Jets released wide receiver Eric Decker. The Jets had previously told Decker that he would be released or traded — they couldn’t find a suitable deal, so they released him outright instead. "<strongEric Decker (vertical)” width=”226″ height=”300″ />

Decker, a 2010 third-round pick, broke out with the Broncos in 2012 and 2013. He carried his strong production to New Jersey in his first two years with the Jets, tallying a combined 154 catches for 1,989 yards and 17 touchdowns. Then, he was derailed by hip and shoulder injuries. Decker saw just three games in 2016, but still managed to take 9 grabs for a highly efficient 194 yards with two TDs.

Still, Decker’s contract had two years and over $36MM to go. Instead of banking on a bounce-back year, the Jets opted to save $7.5MM in cap room. Initially, the Jets figured they could parlay Decker into some draft capital, once fellow vet Jeremy Maclin landed elsewhere. The Ravens had some interest in Decker, but they got Maclin on an affordable two-year, $11MM contract. After that, the trade market dried up.

The Ravens thought about adding Decker once he was available, but they ultimately held off. Instead, Decker joined the Titans for his age-30 season. It was a logical fit — the Titans needed an experienced wide receiver to prevent defenses from targeting DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry. Plus, Decker and his family already lived near Nashville.

Decker went on to appear in every game, but finished with just 54 catches, 563 yards, and one TD in 2017. In 2018, Decker signed with the Patriots, giving him a chance at revenge against the Jets. However, he didn’t get the chance — amidst long odds of making the final cut, Decker chose to retire instead. Decker’s still only 34, but it looks like he’s enjoying life without football.

49ers, Texans Cancel Minicamps

June 12th, 2021 at 5:01pm CST by Sam Robinson

Two more teams are opting against holding minicamps this year. The Texans and 49ers decided to wrap their offseason programs early this week. Both teams’ minicamps were scheduled to take place next week.

Kyle Shanahan said he was leaning toward nixing the extra week of offseason work — the only mandatory pre-training camp component on the NFL’s spring/summer agenda — due to strong OTA attendance. However, the fifth-year HC added recent injuries were a factor. The 49ers lost part-time starters Justin Skule and Tarvarius Moore for the season, and running back Jeff Wilson will miss regular-season time after suffering an injury during OTAs.

“My plan was to get eight (OTAs in), then I was gonna surprise them on Thursday and take everyone bowling,” Shanahan said, via Kyle Madson of Niners Wire. “But after our seventh practice with those two injuries and just the aura it gave to it, I wasn’t gonna come back and do one more just to do one more. … I kinda decided earlier in this if we could get our OTAs in I wasn’t gonna keep them for minicamp because (this year’s offseason schedule is) a week longer than usual.”

The 49ers return many of their starters from 2020, though they did make a notable addition to their quarterback room via the Trey Lance trade. The Texans brought in numerous free agents on short-term deals and changed their coaching staff. Nevertheless, David Culley opted to pull the plug on the three-day mandatory minicamp, Aaron Wilson of Sports Talk 790 notes. The Texans were facing the likelihood of Deshaun Watson beginning a holdout by skipping minicamp, but they postponed that drama for the time being.

These cancelations follow the Eagles and Colts making the same moves and come after the NFLPA encouraged a sizable number of veterans to stay away from voluntary offseason work. While this has led to hiccups — notably in Denver, when Ja’Wuan James and DaeSean Hamilton suffered season-ending injuries away from the team’s facility — it also prompted several teams to rearrange their offseason schedules. It remains to be seen if any developmental impact will emerge from these changes, but the union will likely continue its quest to alter the NFL offseason in 2022.

WR Rumors: Jones, Toney, Giants, OBJ

June 12th, 2021 at 4:18pm CST by Sam Robinson

Julio Jones trade rumors first surfaced because the Falcons identified his contract as a way to create much-needed cap space, but later reports indicated the decorated receiver requested a trade out of Atlanta in March. Traded to the Titans for a package headlined by a second-round pick, Jones described his Falcons divorce as mutual.

“We discussed everything. We just made the decision,” Jones said, via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “It was just cut and dry. There was nothing toward football; it’s business. So, you just had to accept whatever happens, happens. Like I said, it was a mutual agreement on it. We just split up.”

The 32-year-old wide receiver built a Hall of Fame resume in Georgia and, for a bit this spring, was slated to team with Calvin Ridley and Kyle Pitts. But this reality never appeared to be on the table. Jones did, in fact, request a trade in March, Ledbetter adds. The All-Pro target said his Atlanta exit did not come about because of the team’s transition from the Dan Quinn era to an Arthur Smith-led staff. The Titans agreed to take on all of Jones’ $15.3MM guaranteed 2021 salary, separating them from the rest of the trade suitors.

Here is the latest wide receiver news from around the league:

  • Odell Beckham Jr. skipped much of the Browns‘ 2019 offseason program and did not work out with Baker Mayfield during the COVID-19-marred 2020 offseason. Beckham was rehabbing an offseason surgery at that point. Despite having torn an ACL Oct. 25 of last year, OBJ joined Jarvis Landry in working out with Mayfield in Austin this week, Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal notes. Landry confirmed Beckham was running routes at Mayfield’s workouts, via Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. A lack of chemistry between Beckham and Mayfield has been evident during their 1 1/2 seasons together; extra reps should help ahead of a key season for the former Pro Bowl wide receiver. The Browns, who have seen many veterans stay away from OTAs, will convene for minicamp next week.
  • Kadarius Toney also avoided his team’s OTAs, skipping the Giants‘ pre-minicamp workouts. The first-round pick doing so surprised the team, Dan Duggan of The Athletic notes (subscription required). Toney did not sign his rookie contract until last week but had inked a waiver to protect himself in case of an injury during OTAs. Rookies often work out with their teams before signing their deals. Toney’s four-year, $13.7MM contract is fully guaranteed.
  • Shortly after the Giants selected Toney 20th overall, Joe Judge called Sterling Shepard to discuss his future with the team, per Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News. “I thought it was necessary to talk to Shep specifically because when we drafted Toney, the word in the press as he was reading those headlines was specifically he’s a slot receiver,” Judge said. “Which, look, we are not bringing in someone to play one position. I thought it was relevant at the time to contact Shep out of respect for how he is with our program to communicate that with him.” Shepard is the longest-tenured Giant, arriving during the Jerry Reese regime. Although Shepard is signed through 2023, the Giants can create more than $6MM in cap space by moving on from him next year. The sixth-year veteran is expected to play more in the slot, following Kenny Golladay‘s arrival, after working there a career-low 34% of the time in 2020.

Davante Adams Will Not Stage Holdout

June 12th, 2021 at 3:34pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although Davante Adams reported for Packers minicamp this week, he did not participate in any of the three-day event’s on-field work. Adams is not injured, but the All-Pro wideout kept it light while in a contract year, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic tweets.

This approach could be classified in the hold-in genre, but Adams provided assurances this week his contract will not be an issue come training camp. The eighth-year receiver said he will report to Packers camp in the event he does not have a new deal in hand by then, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.

The 2020 CBA’s punishments for holding out are stiffer than they were under the 2011 agreement. Teams are no longer able to waive fines for players who hold out. Aaron Rodgers may well go through with one anyway, but his top target is not planning to do so. Adams joined the rest of the Packers’ veteran receivers by skipping those, but the rest of this group did go through minicamp with Jordan Love. The upcoming stretch for Adams proves interesting, given Rodgers’ status.

Adams, 28, has become one of the NFL’s premier wideouts, but his contract no longer reflects it. He signed a four-year, $58MM extension in December 2017. The Packers did well to lock Adams down before he had compiled a 1,000-yard season, correctly anticipating the former second-round pick would break out. Adams now has two 1,000-yard campaigns and a 997-yard 2019, when he played just 12 games, and he led the NFL with 98.1 receiving yards per game last season. The Fresno State alum, however, signed his extension before the receiver market climbed in 2018. Excluding Allen Robinson‘s franchise tag, Adams is now the NFL’s 16th-highest-paid receiver.

While Adams has earned a lucrative third contract, it is not yet certain he will aggressively pursue one with the Packers. Rodgers has undoubtedly helped Adams rise to his current place among receivers, and his top weapon said last month a Rodgers-less future in Green Bay would impact his plans with the Packers. Adams stumped for Rodgers again this week. With the reigning MVP not budging in his quest to leave, Adams signing a long-term extension could tie him to Love and/or another non-Rodgers QB1 for the rest of his prime.

Of course, Adams betting on himself in a season without Rodgers would bring some risk as well. Should he opt against an extension, the Packers would still have the franchise tag at their disposal. They have not used the tag since 2010, when they cuffed defensive lineman Ryan Pickett.

Contract Details: Tannehill, Saints, Ravens

June 12th, 2021 at 2:32pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the details from the latest contracts agreed to around the NFL:

  • Ryan Tannehill, QB (Titans): Tannehill’s restructured deal will pay out a $1.5MM base salary in 2021 and count $11.1MM against the cap, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Those numbers jump back up beginning in 2022, with Tannehill set to earn a $29MM base salary and count $38.6MM against Tennessee’s cap. In 2023, Tannehill is due a $27MM base and will be a $36.6MM cap hit. The Titans used two void years (2024 and ’25) to help create more than $15MM in cap space.
  • Marshon Lattimore, CB (Saints): Four years, $120MM, according to Yates (on Twitter). Like New Orleans’ Taysom Hill deal, this contract is flush with void years and does not reflect true value. Lattimore’s fifth-year option ($10.2MM) will be spread onto the Saints’ 2021 and ’22 salary caps, with $2.841MM on this year’s cap and $7.403MM next year, according to OverTheCap. Lattimore remains under contract through 2021.
  • Gus Edwards, RB (Ravens): Two years, $10MM. Edwards will collect a $3.75MM signing bonus and earn base salaries of $1MM (2021), $3.25MM (’22) and $4.38MM (’23) on this extension, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic notes (subscription required).
  • Ja’Wuan James, OT (Ravens): One year, up to $9MM. James will receive a $500K signing bonus but count just $250K toward Baltimore’s cap this year, Zrebiec adds. If James is on the Ravens’ roster on the fifth day of the 2022 league year, he will collect a $500K roster bonus. In that scenario, James’ 2022 base salary will be $2.5MM. He would then count $3.25MM against the Ravens’ 2022 cap. $5MM in incentives round out the deal.
  • De’Vondre Campbell, LB (Packers): One year, $2MM, per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Silverstein (on Twitter). Campbell will receive a $1.1MM signing bonus and count $1.19MM against Green Bay’s 2021 cap. The Packers tacked on four void years, creating an $808K cap hit in 2022. The deal also contains $500K in playing-time incentives.

Latest On Packers, Aaron Rodgers

June 12th, 2021 at 12:30pm CST by Ben Levine

While Packers President/CEO Mark Murphy recently made it clear that he wants Aaron Rodgers to stick around Green Bay, the executive isn’t doing much to help his cause. During an event at Lambeau on Thursday, Murphy admitted that his star quarterback is a “complicated fella” (via ESPN’s Field Yates on Twitter).

[RELATED: Packers’ Aaron Rodgers Begins Holdout]

“I’m often reminded though…of Ted Thompson, as most of you know, just a great general manager, passed away (earlier this year),” Murphy said (via NBC 26 in Green Bay). “(Thompson) often talked about Aaron, that he’s a… and it wasn’t just Aaron, a lot of different players. He would say ‘He’s a complicated fella.’…So I’ll just leave it at that.”

That probably won’t help, Mark. Rodgers officially began his holdout this week as the future Hall of Famer continues to push for a divorce. The reigning MVP wants to take his talents elsewhere, which would leave 2020 first-round pick Jordan Love or Blake Bortles as the No. 1 QB in Green Bay. Murphy, GM Brian Gutekunst, and head coach Matt LaFleur say that won’t happen, leading to the current standoff.

During a recent column on the team website, Murphy noted that Rodgers trade request has divided the fan base, but he also noted that the organization is “committed to resolving things with Aaron.” From a financial perspective, the Packers front office may be on to something. While Rodgers has already passed on $500K of bonuses by missing the team’s voluntary workout (and he could lose another $200+ for skipping minicamp), the real financial toll will come when Rodgers starts missing games. In the unlikely event he stays home all year, the 37-year-old will forfeit his $14.7MM salary, $6.8MM roster bonus, and be forced to refund $23MM of his signing bonus.

Cowboys DE Randy Gregory Hoping To Take On Leadership Role

June 12th, 2021 at 10:30am CST by Ben Levine

Cowboys defensive end Randy Gregory has had a turbulent NFL career, having been suspended four times since he turned pro in 2015. Shortly after his latest reinstatement in September, Dallas showed some faith in the Nebraska product by extending his contract through 2021, and the 28-year-old ended up seeing time in 10 games during the 2020 campaign. While it’s difficult to put too much faith into the embattled pass rusher, Gregory is hoping to build off his 2020 season and become a team leader.

“This year, I think for me, is about really finding my role on this team,” Gregory told Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. “Not as somebody who’s here and then leaves for a certain amount of time. Somebody who’s here to stay and somebody that wants to be a leader, not only vocally but on the field with my play.

“I think that’s one of the biggest things for me that I’ve always struggled with is my leadership skills on and off the field, so this year, I’m trying to be a little bit more invested because I am one of the older guys in the group. I think me, [DeMarcus Lawrence] and [Brent Urban] are the three oldest guys in our D-line group. Naturally, I feel like guys are looking at me for input and advice or looking at me to make a play and show people how it’s done.”

Gregory flashed his talent last season, tallying 3.5 sacks and 12 QB hits. However, his playing time was inconsistent, and the defensive end is hoping for more opportunities after the organization replaced defensive coordinator Mike Nolan with Dan Quinn.

“Obviously, I wanted to be out there,” Gregory said. “Obviously, I felt like there were things I could do to help the team win. I honestly felt like when I did go out there, with the sample that I was able to put out there, I’d done a pretty good job, enough so that I feel like the new staff knows what they have in me and knows what they need to do to get me where I need to be as a player.”

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