2022 September - Pro Football Rumors

Latest On Retired C J.C. Tretter

September 3rd, 2022 at 9:53pm CST by Adam La Rose

J.C. Tretter made the surprising move of retiring last month. The 31-year-old had been a quality full-time starter for five seasons with the Browns, but, as he confirmed not long after announcing his decision, he faced a notable lack of free agent options.

Tretter was released by Cleveland in March, leaving him on the open market throughout the summer. Over that span, he told Sports Illustrated’s Alex Prewitt, the Cornell alum put together a shortlist of clubs he would prefer to sign with, including the Panthers, Cowboys and Vikings. In all, his representatives contracted seven teams inquiring about a potential deal.

“Minnesota never returned our call,” Tretter said, however, adding that none of his potential landing spots showed significant interest in signing him. That lack of a market was noted throughout the summer, when injuries such as the one suffered by Ryan Jensen did little (if anything) to increase his chances of joining a third career team. That led to speculation that Tretter’s status as NFLPA president was a contributing factor to his circumstances.

Indeed, the former fourth-rounder added, “I always said, ‘My NFLPA job is gonna end my career well before my knees end my career.'” Tretter’s role in the union was reported to be a source of tension between himself and the Browns which explained, in part, their decision not only to release him but to not seek a reunion after projected replacement Nick Harris suffered a season-ending knee injury.

With respect to contract demands, Tretter described his desired salary as “not at a vet minimum” but also “well below the value [that] I bring.” He averaged over $10.8MM on the contract that the Browns terminated, but would, based on those comments, have accepted a significantly lower rate to continue his playing days.

Regardless of the circumstances surrounding the end of his on-field football career, Tretter reiterated that he will not look to un-retire at any point in the 2022 season if interest in him were to heat up. Instead, he will turn his attention elsewhere, including his remaining time as NFLPA president.

“I’ve gotten to the point where I’m going to retire,” he said. “I know what I’ve accomplished in my career and I’m at peace with that.”

Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III Could Play Week 1

September 3rd, 2022 at 8:10pm CST by Adam La Rose

Not much is expected of the Seahawks’ passing attack this season, but their ground game could be a strength of the team given their investment in the position. The newest member of their running backs room is slated to play a large role in its performance, though his availability to begin the season remains a question.

Rookie Kenneth Walker III is currently recovering from hernia surgery which took place just over two weeks ago. The procedure kept him sidelined for the remainder of Seattle’s preseason contests but Week 1 of the regular season was named at the time as a potential return date.

On that point, Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson reports that Walker has resumed practicing and that “there’s a shot” the Michigan State alum will be able to suit up for the regular season opener. He does caution, however, that a Week 2 return remains the likelier scenario at this point.

“This is really uncharted territory for him and for us too in that regard in what he’s coming back from,” head coach Pete Carroll said when asked about Walker’s progress. “He feels way better, he’s moving around… It’s just going to be one day at a time.”

Whenever the second-rounder is recovered, he will provide a significant boost to Seattle’s run game. Last year’s Walter Camp and Doak Walker award winners as the nation’s top running back, Walker put up 1,636 rushing yards and 18 touchdown during his first and only campaign with the Spartans. He will take on at least a notable rotational role alongside Rashaad Penny in the backfield.

The Seahawks lost Chris Carson to retirement this offseason, so while Penny represents the team’s present after inking a one-year deal to stay in the Emerald City, Walker certainly represents their future. The Seahawks may only need to wait a matter of days to see the latter make his NFL debut.

Latest On Lions CB Jeff Okudah

September 3rd, 2022 at 7:07pm CST by Adam La Rose

A number of new faces have raised expectations for the Lions in 2022, but the return of a familiar one could give the team a significant boost in the secondary. Cornerback Jeff Okudah is in line to start the season at full health, which will allow him to occupy the position the team envisioned for him in during the 2020 draft.

The No. 3 selection in that year’s draft, Okudah’s NFL career has been marred by injuries. He missed seven games as a rookie, then suffered a torn Achilles during Detroit’s season opener last year. That substantial amount of time spent on the sidelines has derailed his development, and led to questions about where he would line up upon his return to health.

In June, it was reported that the team was not considering a position change in the wake of potential mobility concerns. Slated to remain a boundary corner, then, the Ohio State product entered training camp and the preseason with a perceived need to reclaim his starting spot. His summer performances have allowed him to do just that.

Head coach Dan Campbell confirmed, via team reporter Tim Twentyman, that Okudah will remain a first-teamer when the regular season begins. “I thought he did some good things,” Campbell said after the team’s preseason finale. “I feel like he’s been trending in the right direction now for two weeks.”

Okudah would provide the Lions with an effective 1-2 tandem at the position should he return to form. Amani Oruwariye enjoyed a breakout season in Okudah’s absence last year, posting six interceptions and 11 pass deflections. That performance could land him an extension, though Okudah could be on his rookie deal for three more years if Detroit picks up his fifth-year option.

Much of that decision, of course, will depend on his ability to recover from a major injury and live up to his draft stock. With a starting spot in hand, he will have every opportunity to do so.

AFC Rumors: Gilmore, Pryor, Petit-Frere, Wilson, Jaguars

September 3rd, 2022 at 5:59pm CST by Ely Allen

Cornerback Stephon Gilmore is playing with his fourth team after a short stint in Carolina. He started in Buffalo before signing with the Patriots. New England traded the two-time All-Pro midseason for only a sixth-round draft pick in return. Gilmore was injured at the time, but the compensation the Patriots received never made a ton of sense. Recently, though, Gilmore elaborated on the situation that deteriorated in New England, according to Stephen Holder of ESPN.

At the peak of his career, Gilmore suffered a torn quadriceps in the 2020 season. The injury kept him on the Patriots’ reserve/physically unable to perform list to start the 2021 season and, during that time, the relationship between Gilmore and New England “reached a point of no return.”

“I just didn’t like how they handled my situation, my injury,” Gilmore told reporters. “The situation just, I don’t know, wasn’t right for both sides.”

Here are a few more rumors from around the AFC, starting with a couple position battle victories in the AFC South:

In a bit of a surprise decision, it appears that veteran offensive tackle Matt Pryor has won the left tackle job in Indianapolis over rookie third-round pick Bernhard Raimann, according to Joel A. Erickson of the Indianapolis Star. Pryor has only ever started one game at left tackle in the NFL and many expected the rookie out of Central Michigan to give him a strong run for the job. Erickson goes on to say that, should Pryor not perform up to expectations, there’s a strong chance that the starting job could slip out of his grasp.
A third-round rookie who did win the starting job is just across the division in Tennessee. Titans general manager Jon Robinson made it known last weekend that Ohio State rookie Nicholas Petit-Frere will start at right tackle to open the season, according to Kayla Anderson of WKRN News 2. Last year’s rookie offensive lineman Dillon Radunz failed to earn much of a role last season but, reportedly, did everything right this offseason. Still, Petit-Frere has effectively won the starting job and Radunz will continue to come off the bench in Year 2.
New Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson received an impressive contract extension this week reported as a five-year, $245MM deal. The new money on the contract extension was originally reported to be $49MM per year. Those original reports failed to take the league’s new 17th-week into account when calculating the new money, according to Mike Florio of NBC Sports. Wilson was entitled to two more years under his previous contract and the original new money reports included the Week 17 paychecks that really should’ve been included with the original contract. So, while still an extremely impressive payday for Wilson, his average new money is more like $48.52MM per year than $49MM.
The Jaguars are losing a member of their front office, according to Seth Walder of ESPN. Director of strategic research & development Momin Ghaffar is leaving the team for a job outside of football. In fact, the job is “outside of sports.” This isn’t a terrible surprise as the position was one of Jacksonville’s many roles that fuse business analytics with football analytics.

NFC East Rumors: Rush, Smith, Golladay, Giants

September 3rd, 2022 at 4:51pm CST by Ely Allen

The Cowboys were extremely relieved to see quarterback Dak Prescott return for a full season last year after only playing five games in 2020. Still, the 29-year-old’s prolonged absence two years ago instilled a sense of importance in the backup quarterback job for Dallas. This year, the No. 2 passer for the Cowboys will be Cooper Rush, according to Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Dallas made a puzzling move by only leaving one quarterback on the team’s initial 53-man roster last Tuesday. When the Cowboys’ practice squad was announced the next day, it was seen that the other quarterbacks from the roster, Rush and Will Grier, were signed to the practice squad. As of the writing of this post, Rush remains a member of the practice squad.

Head coach Mike McCarthy is the person who broke the news to the media, so the Cowboys must have some intention of using Rush from the practice squad. Due to COVID-19, a rule was established allowing teams to promote practice squad players to the active roster for gamedays. Unless McCarthy and the Cowboys plan on elevating Rush to the active roster sometime before the season starts, they may just intend on fully dedicating one of the those weekly promotion spots to Rush or Grier to serve as a gameday backup.

Here are a few other rumors from around the NFC East, starting with another rumor from the Lone Star state:

We wrote recently about the recently extended timeline for the recovery of Cowboys offensive tackle Tyron Smith. With Smith sidelined, Dallas will turn to rookie first-round pick Tyler Smith to start at left tackle. Dallas drafted the younger Smith to start alongside the older Smith on the offensive line, but owner/president/general manager Jerry Jones seems content with the current situation, according to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. “Do I wish we had Tyron?” Jones posed to the media. “Yes. Will we get Tyron back? Likely. But, in the meantime, (Tyler is) going to come in and get a Harvard Doctor’s degree in playing left tackle between now and then. Will we pay some price with it? Yes. Can we win with him paying the price? I think so, yes.”
While talking to the media on Friday, Giants general manager Joe Schoen revealed a tidbit about wide receiver Kenny Golladay. Golladay apparently missed most of the spring after undergoing a “procedure,” according to Dan Duggan of The Athletic. Golladay didn’t ever provide any specifics about a procedure and was a full participant through camp, so, whatever the procedure was, it must’ve been minor.
New York was looking to bring back a former player in their scouting department this offseason in Chris Snee, but it appears that he will be working elsewhere this season, according to Duggan. When Snee was with New York, he served as an All-Pro guard and won a Super Bowl. Instead of joining the staff in New York, Snee accepted a role at his alma mater as an analyst for Boston College.

Commanders S Kamren Curl May Need Surgery On Thumb

September 3rd, 2022 at 3:19pm CST by Ely Allen

The Commanders will already be without star defensive end Chase Young to start the season, but it’s looking like they may lose a starter in their secondary, as well. Third-year safety Kamren Curl suffered a thumb injury this week, according to Ben Standig of The Athletic. While head coach Ron Rivera shied away from giving the media a report on the injury, The Athletic reports that the injury may have required surgery, as Curl was seen in a sling and a possible cast.

It isn’t apparent when Curl suffered the injury, but he didn’t appear in the Commanders’ final preseason game against the Ravens last Saturday. It was reported that Curl had to leave practice last Thursday with a member of the training staff, but nothing official was reported.

Curl has been a pleasant surprise for Washington, emerging as a starter during his rookie season despite being a seventh-round draft pick. As a rookie starter, Curl intercepted three passes, returning one 76 yards for a touchdown. He was unable to pick off any passes in his sophomore season, but Curl was second on the team, behind only linebacker Cole Holcomb, in total tackles, outpacing fellow safety Landon Collins.

If Curl’s potential surgery forces him to miss any time, Washington has a number of options to fill in for him. The first name off the bench is likely Darrick Forrest. Forrest is a second-year safety out of Cincinnati. The former fifth-round pick played extremely sparingly last year, but should be prepared to step up in the case of Curl’s absence.

Additional depth can be provided by rookie fourth-round pick Percy Butler and Jeremy Reaves. Reaves has started eight games for Washington in his four years with the team and is a reliable depth piece in case the Commanders don’t feel fully comfortable relying on the younger Forrest or Butler.

It remains to be seen what the outlook is for Curl’s recovery. As Rivera told the media, “(they) don’t have to give (us) the injury report” until Wednesday.

NFC Workouts: Keene, Osemele, Brown, Butler

September 3rd, 2022 at 2:06pm CST by Ely Allen

NFL teams continue to try and piece together their ideal rosters as the regular season approaches. Tight end Dalton Keene is putting out feelers lately, taking visits to San Francisco and Pittsburgh this week, according to two tweets from ESPN’s Field Yates.

Keene faces long odds of getting a job with the 49ers, who currently hold four tight ends on a roster that includes George Kittle, Tyler Kroft, Charlie Woerner, and Ross Dwelley. All three backups behind Kittle had more play and production last year than Keene has had throughout his young career.

Pittsburgh has three tight ends on their roster with Pat Freiermuth, Zach Gentry, and sixth-round rookie Connor Heyward (brother of Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward). The Steelers’ tight end group is a bit less experienced or proven than San Francisco’s, so Keene has a better chance of getting an opportunity in Pittsburgh, but no deals have been announced in the meantime.

Here are a few other notable workouts from around the NFC, starting with a former All-Pro who hasn’t played since 2020:

Offensive guard Kelechi Osemele is attempting to make a big comeback into the NFL. Osemele worked out with the Bears this past Thursday, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The 2016 first-team All-Pro has seen his career derailed by injuries over the past few years. After being traded from the Raiders to the Jets, Osemele was released when he underwent shoulder surgery that the Jets didn’t deem necessary. He signed on the next year with Kansas City but was placed on injured reserve after tearing tendons in both knees in a Week 5 game in 2020. The 33-year-old looks to be trying to make his way back to the field and the Bears, who recently claimed another former Raider in Alex Leatherwood, certainly could use the depth.
With defensive tackles Malcolm Roach and Albert Huggins on injured reserve, the Saints are looking to improve their depth at the position. On Wednesday they tried out former Panthers and Bills defensive lineman Vernon Butler, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Butler’s best season came with he started nine games for the Panthers in 2019, racking up 6.0 sacks, but he has been a reliable rotational defensive lineman for the Bills since then.
The Lions hosted defensive tackle Malcom Brown back in late-August, according to Yates. The former first-round pick failed to make an impression, though. Despite the Lions dedicating 13 roster spots to the defensive line on their initial 53-man roster, Brown remains a free agent in search of his next opportunity.

Jaguars Cut LB Ty Summers

September 3rd, 2022 at 12:45pm CST by Ben Levine

Ty Summers‘ brief stint with the Jaguars has already come to an end. Jacksonville has cut the linebacker, according to Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com (via Twitter).

Summers was waived by the Packers last week, but he was promptly claimed by the Jaguars thanks to their top spot in the waiver order. He was expected to provide some extra depth at the linebacker position, but Summers has mostly earned his worth on special teams.

However, since claiming Summers, the Jaguars also put in a claim for linebacker Caleb Johnson. The newer addition appears to be sticking around as a fifth inside linebacker behind first-round rookie Devin Lloyd, Foyesade Oluokun, third-round rookie Chad Muma, and Shaquille Quarterman.

Summers was a seventh-round pick by the Packers in 2019. After exclusively playing on special teams as a rookie, he saw a larger role in defense in 2020, finishing with 39 tackles in 16 games (one start). However, his defensive role was reduced again in 2021, and the 26-year-old finished the 2021 campaign with nine tackles in 14 games. Summers didn’t make it very far through waivers last time around, so there’s a chance he lands on another squad before the weekend is through.

Latest On Giants WR Darius Slayton

September 3rd, 2022 at 11:11am CST by Ben Levine

Darius Slayton recently generated some interest around the NFL, but it sounds like he’ll be staying in New York for at least Week 1. Giants GM said the wide receiver will be on the team for the start of the season, per Paul Schwartz of the New York Post (on Twitter).

Slayton never appeared to be in the long-term plans of the new Giants regime. The wideout was shopped before the draft, and he was buried on the depth chart by the time the Giants hit the practice field. Still, he managed to secure a roster spot, and for the time being, he’ll slide in behind Kenny Golladay, Kadarius Toney, Sterling Shepard, David Sills, and rookie second-round pick Wan’Dale Robinson on the depth chart.

With Slayton appearing to be on the outs in New York, we heard recently that several teams had reached out to the Giants about a trade. While the 25-year-old is temporarily staying put, he could continue to be a popular name in trade chatter, especially if the Giants struggle. Slayton is due a $2.54MM base salary in 2022, a reasonable salary if a suitor has a role for him.

Slayton found himself in and out of the Giants starting lineup through his first three seasons in the NFL, but he’s shown flashes. Following a productive rookie campaign that saw him finish with 48 receptions for 740 yards and eight touchdowns, Slayton followed that up with 50 catches for 751 yards in 2020. However, he took a step back in 2021, finishing with career-lows in receptions (26), receiving yards (339), and touchdowns (two).

Lions Rework OT Taylor Decker’s Contract

September 3rd, 2022 at 10:01am CST by Ben Levine

The Lions have opened up a chunk of cap space. Detroit converted $6MM of Taylor Decker’s base salary into a signing bonus, according to ESPN’s Field Yates (on Twitter). The move opened up $4.5MM in cap space.

The veteran offensive lineman now has a 2022 cap hit of $14.4MM. His 2023 cap hit has been increased to $19.35MM, and his 2024 cap hit jumped to $19.1MM. Decker also has a void year on his contract for the 2025 campaign.

Decker, a 2016 first-round pick, has spent his entire career in Detroit. He inked a five-year, $70.35MM extension with the Lions in 2020, locking him in through the 2024 season.

The 29-year-old was limited to only nine games in 2021 thanks to a finger injury that sidelined him for a few months. When he was on the field, he was still plenty productive, ranking 27th among 83 qualifying offensive tackles on Pro Football Focus’ ranking of the position. His pass-block grade ranked sixth at the position. Decker has never managed to crack PFF’s top-10 at the tackle position, but he’s consistently graded as an above-average starter throughout his career.