Patriots Will Not Re-Sign Brandon Gibson
The Patriots have informed Brandon Gibson they will not re-sign him, a source tells Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (on Twitter). Gibson tore his ACL in August, ending his 2015 season before it could begin. Gibson is apparently still rehabbing his knee injury, so that will be a concern for any interested team this spring. 
Gibson, 28, signed a one-year, minimum-salary benefit contract with the Patriots in March, getting a $40K bonus to join the club. The torn ACL was especially unfortunate because the wide receiver was having a strong preseason for New England.
Gibson, a former sixth-round pick of the Eagles, spent four seasons with the Rams before landing with the Dolphins in 2013. In 2013, he hauled in 30 catches for 326 yards and three touchdowns in just seven games. In 2014, Gibson totaled 29 receptions for 295 yards and a TD in 14 contests.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
FA Rumors: Nelson, Falcons, Giants, Conte
The latest free agent rumors as Wednesday draws closer:
- The Falcons have expressed interest in Bengals safety Reggie Nelson, according to a source who spoke with Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com. Nelson hauled in a league-leading eight interceptions last season.
- The Giants have expressed interest in Vikings free agent guard Mike Harris, according to Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press (on Twitter). Harris is currently mulling a two-year, $3.5MM offer from Minnesota.
- Buccaneers safety Chris Conte is drawing interest from multiple teams, per Rand Getlin of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Bucs want him back, but he’ll explore the market before making a commitment.
- The Texans are holding discussions with cornerback A.J. Bouye about a potential new contract, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle writes. The Texans can retain Bouye with a low tender of $1.671MM, but it sounds like they might work out a one-year deal at a lower rate instead. The 24-year-old entered the league in 2013 as a UDFA out of UCF.
- Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter) believes that free agent tight end Rob Housler will ultimately wind up back with the Bears.
Patriots To Pick Up Gronkowski’s Option Bonus
The Patriots will pick up the rest of Rob Gronkowski‘s $10MM option bonus before March 9th, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). So, as expected, the tight end will not reach free agency. 
New England paid $4MM of that option bonus last year and paying the additional $6MM of this bonus now will trigger the rest of Gronkowski’s extension. The Patriots now have the rights to the tight end for four more seasons at $34MM. The superstar will have modest cap numbers of $6.6MM and $7MM in the next two seasons before those figures balloon to $11MM and $12MM in 2018 and ’19.
In 2015, Gronk caught 72 passes for 1,176 yards and 11 touchdowns across 15 regular season games. For yet another season, Gronkowski established himself as one of the most lethal tight ends in the game today. For his efforts, Gronk earned his third First-Team All-Pro selection and his fourth Pro Bowl nod.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
ERFA Signings & Decisions: 3/7/16
Here are today’s transactions involving exclusive rights free agents:
- The Falcons have tendered safety Ricardo Allen, reports Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Allen started in 14 of 15 appearances last season, amassing 68 tackles and three interceptions. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked his performance 46th out of 88 qualifying safeties.
- Cornerback Charles James has re-signed with the Texans, according to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). The 25-year-old appeared in nine games for the Texans last season, logged one start and totaled 19 tackles. They’ve also re-signed offensive lineman Jeff Adams, tweets Tania Ganguli of ESPN. Adams started in both of his 2015 appearances.
- The Patriots will tender corner Justin Coleman, per Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (Twitter link). Coleman made 21 tackles in 10 games (two starts) last season.
- The Bengals have re-signed center T.J. Johnson, according to their official Twitter account. Johnson appeared in 12 games last season.
Free Agent Rumors: Wisniewski, Browns, Pacman
The Browns have expressed interest in Jaguars free agent center Stefen Wisniewski, a league source tells Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer (on Twitter). The Browns are in danger of losing three-time Pro Bowl center Alex Mack to free agency and they could turn to the 26-year-old as a replacement. Hue Jackson was the coach in Oakland when the Raiders used their 2011 second round draft choice on Wisniewski.
The latest free agent rumors from around the NFL:
- The Browns have expressed interest in free agent cornerback Adam Jones, a league source tells Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer (on Twitter). Jones, a Bengals free agent, has been heavily linked to Miami in recent weeks thanks to his connection with defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.
- The Vikings and Matt Asiata are far apart on a possible contract, Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press (on Twitter) hears from a source. Several other teams expressed an interest in the running back on Monday, he adds. Asiata has previously stated that he would like to return to Minnesota.
- 49ers free agent Alex Boone and Cardinals free agent Bobby Massie are two offensive linemen who could get north of $8MM per season, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) hears.
- The Vikings have reached out to the representative of Bengals free agent linebacker Vincent Rey, per Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press (on Twitter). The Vikings are in need of a linebacker and Mike Zimmer is familiar with Rey from their previous time together.
- Backup quarterback Drew Stanton is unlikely to return to the Cardinals, an NFL source tells Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic (on Twitter).
- The Eagles had significant interest in signing wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey before he re-upped with the Steelers, as Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets.
Broncos Place Peyton Manning On Reserve/Retired List
We’ve known for some time that Peyton Manning would retire, but it wasn’t immediately clear whether the Broncos would place him on the reserve/retired list or simply release him. Today, we have our answer, as the Broncos have officially placed Manning on the reserve/retired list. Now, if Manning ever does decide to return to football, the Broncos will retain his rights. 
Manning decided to retire from the NFL over the weekend, leaving the sport as a two-time Super Bowl champion and a shoe-in Hall of Famer. No. 18 leaves the game as the league’s all-time leader in total wins by a QB (200), passing yards (71,940), and passing touchdowns (539) and also leaves the sport as the highest-paid player in league history. Over his career, Manning has netted roughly a quarter-billion dollars, and that’s before considering his sponsorship deals.
Manning evened the score with brother Eli Manning when he secured his second Super Bowl ring, but Manning had a tumultuous year to say the least. Manning struggled mightily to open the season but many didn’t notice as the Broncos came out of the gate 7-0 thanks to their defense. Soon after that, however, Manning’s decline became quite apparent to all observers. The Broncos eventually installed Brock Osweiler as their starting QB and it wasn’t until Week 17 when they put the Sheriff back in the starting role.
Nevertheless, Manning leaves the game as one of the very best quarterbacks of all-time. And, if he ever pulls a Brett Favre, the Broncos will own his NFL rights.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Panthers Re-Sign Stephen Hill
The Panthers (Twitter link) announced that they have re-signed wide receiver Stephen Hill to a one-year deal. Hill missed all of the 2015 season after tearing his ACL over the summer.
Prior to Hill’s unfortunate injury, the team was said to be high on the wide receiver. Hill’s talent led the Jets to take him in the second round of the 2012 draft, but he was never able to come close to what was expected of him. After two disappointing seasons, the Jets cut Hill prior to the 2014 season. Soon after, the Panthers added him to their taxi squad. In July of last year, Hill was issued a citation for a drug paraphernalia charge during a traffic stop in Concord, North Carolina. Despite all the bumps in the road, the Panthers are apparently not ready to give up on Hill.
Terms of the deal are not yet known, but it’s doubtful that the Panthers are committing serious dollars to Hill.
RFA Tender Signings & Decisions: 3/7/16
When teams assign first- or second-round tenders to their restricted free agents, or when those RFAs accept the tender, we’ll devote full news stories to those moves. For news concerning everyone else getting the lower tenders, we’ll round it up in the space below, with the latest updates added to the top of the list throughout the day….
- Fullback James Develin announced that he is returning to the Patriots on a one-year deal, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com tweets. The Patriots did not plan to tender Develin an offer at $1.6MM, so the two sides worked out a reduced one-year pact (link).
- Defensive tackle Stefan Charles will not be tendered an offer by the Bills, per John Kryk of The Toronto Sun (on Twitter). Defensive tackle Corbin Bryant, wide receiver Chris Hogan, and tackle Jordan Mills were tendered offers, however. There could be some teams interested in Hogan, Tyler Dunne of The Buffalo News tweets, and that low tender might not ward of interested clubs.
- Washington has tendered a qualifying offer to restricted free agent Duke Ihenacho, a source tells John Keim of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- Fullback Jorvorskie Lane will not be getting a tender from the Buccaneers, Greg Auman of The Tampa Bay Times tweets.
- The Panthers will not tender defensive end Frank Alexander an offer or re-sign him, a source tells Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer (on Twitter). Alexander must sit out until November thanks to his third drug suspension.
Jaguars’ Ryan Davis Signs One-Year Tender
Jaguars defensive end Ryan Davis signed his one-year tender, according to Mike DiRocco of ESPN.com. He will make $2.553MM in 2016 , which, as DiRocco notes, is more than four times what he made in 2015. 
Davis, 27, has appeared in 38 games over the last four years for Jacksonville, earning three accrued seasons during that stretch. He has never played more than a part-time role, but he has shown a knack for getting after the quarterback when he sees the field, recording 11 sacks and three forced fumbles in his NFL career. In 2015, Davis played 250 defensive snaps and picked up 3.5 sacks. He also received the top pass-rushing grade from Pro Football Focus out of any of the Jaguars’ edge defenders or interior linemen.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Saints To Re-Sign Kyle Wilson
Pending free agent cornerback Kyle Wilson won’t hit the open market on Wednesday, according to Rand Getlin of the NFL Network, who reports (via Twitter) that the Saints and Wilson have agreed to terms on a one-year contract that will keep him in New Orleans.
Wilson, a former first-round pick, spent the first five seasons of his NFL career with the Jets before heading to New Orleans for the 2015 season. While he didn’t live up to expectations in the Big Apple, Wilson played well as the Saints’ third cornerback last season, picking up 27 tackles and an interception. Pro Football Focus ranked him 47th out of 111 qualified players at the position.
Despite re-signing Wilson and retaining Delvin Breaux, the Saints will likely be in the market for help at the cornerback position this offseason. The team reportedly intends to cut Brandon Browner from its roster when the new league year begins on Wednesday, after Browner ranked dead-last among PFF’s cornerback rankings in 2015.