NFC Notes: Newton, Lynch, Bucs, 49ers, Cards
Because the Panthers already exercised his fifth-year option, Cam Newton will be Carolina’s quarterback in 2015 — technically, the option doesn’t become guaranteed until the start of the league year, but it’s highly unlikely that the club will rescind the $14.666MM offer before then. The Panthers still need to decide if the former No. 1 overall pick will be their signal-caller for the long-term, however, leading Joseph Person and Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer to examine Newton’s current level of play and the prospect of signing him to an extension.
While Person allows that Newton has regressed during the second half of the season, he points to the Panthers losing key pieces from both their offensive line and their receiving corps as reasons why Newton’s production has waned. Fowler, meanwhile, argues that due to the fragility of running quarterbacks, Carolina should take a “wait and see” approach” — let the 2015 season play out, and then determine if Newton is worth the franchise tag tender or a long-term deal. Back in August, PFR’s Luke Adams looked at the the possibility of the Newton and the Panthers agreeing to a multi-year pact.
More from the NFC:
- Appearing on the NFL Network, Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch spoke about the possibility of remaining in Seattle past 2014. “I’m still under contract (for 2015),” Lynch said (link via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times). “I haven’t even made it through this year. I’m chasing after another one of these [Super Bowl rings].” Lynch is due a $5MM base salary and a $2MM roster bonus next season, but the Seahawks can save $7MM by cutting the veteran RB.
- In a piece scrutinizing the current head-coaching and front office landscape, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe writes that Lovie Smith is a candidate to be fired after the season. “It’s one thing to lose games,” a source said regarding Smith and the Buccaneers, “but to give up 35 points in a quarter?” A league insider also tells Volin that the 49ers will contemplate promoting defensive coordiantor Vic Fangio if Jim Harbaugh exits. “They just want someone with less noise,” said the source.
- We passed along Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com’s Cardinals-centric mailbag yesterday, but there is one additional item of note within, as Weinfuss points out that Arizona’s 2015 quarterback situation is extremely muddled. Coming off an ACL tear, Carson Palmer probably won’t be ready for OTAs, and while Drew Stanton is the Cards’ short-term remedy at the position, Logan Thomas figures to be the long-term answer. Therefore, the club will have to determine how to manage offseason reps, both in order to ready Stanton to be the starter, and to develop Thomas.
Rory Parks contributed to this post.
NFC Mailbags: Panthers, Cards, Lions
We took a look at ESPN’s AFC mailbags earlier this morning. Let’s now focus on notes from the NFC…
- If the Panthers get a top-10 pick, David Newton believes the team will use their selection on an offensive tackle, a defensive back or a defensive lineman. When asked if the team would trade back for multiple assets, Newton says that “quality will be more important than quantity.”
- Josh Weinfuss isn’t convinced the Cardinals will re-sign linebacker Sam Acho, stating that the team should be able to find an adequate replacement. Meanwhile, the writer believes the team should try to retain Antonio Cromartie for a reasonable price.
- If Lions wideout T.J. Jones continues to prove that he’s capable of a bigger role, Ryan Broyles could ultimately find himself without a job, writes Michael Rothstein.
- Ben Goessling is under the impression that Adrian Peterson will not be playing for the Vikings next season. Instead, he believes the team will go with Jerick McKinnon as their primary running back while pursuing a running back later in the draft.
- John Keim says the league’s new CBA, which limits the interaction between players and coaches during the offseason, hurts the development of any young quarterback (including Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III).
Cards Cut Michael Bush, Activate Shaughnessy
Just a week and a half after signing him to a contract, the Cardinals have waived veteran running back Michael Bush, according to Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com (Twitter link). Bush’s release is one of a handful of moves made today by the Cards, who also parted ways with tight end Matthew Mulligan, activated linebacker Matt Shaughnessy from IR-DTR, and promoted running back Kerwynn Williams from the practice squad.
Arizona’s decision to cut Bush is a curious one, since Andre Ellington‘s hip pointer seemed as if it would open the door for the former Bear to get some touches. Instead, the Cards have seemingly decided they prefer Williams, the running back the club initially waived to make room for Bush. With Ellington unable to go this weekend, Williams could get mixed into the backfield rotation along with Stepfan Taylor and Marion Grice.
As Urban adds in a tweet, the fact that Bush has been released doesn’t necessarily preclude his eventual return. It may just be a case of the team not being confident that he was picking up the offense quickly enough, or concerned that he wasn’t yet in ideal football shape. Assuming Bush goes unclaimed on waivers, he’ll revert to unrestricted free agency, and Arizona could always re-sign him.
As for the team’s other pair of roster moves, Mulligan’s release clears the way for Shaughnessy, who was placed on the injured reserve list with the designation to return after Arizona’s Week 5 game, due to a knee injury. The former third-round pick had been starting for the Cards prior to the injury, though it’s not clear if he’ll immediately take on the same workload he had before.
The series of roster moves leaves the Cards with a full 53-man roster and one opening on their practice squad.
Poll: Which NFC Contender Will Miss Playoffs?
Six teams in the NFC so far this season have won at least two-thirds of their games, and head into Week 14 with records of 8-4 or better. Besides the 7-5 Niners, every other team in the conference is 5-7 or worse, suggesting that the difference between the eventual playoff teams and the rest of the NFC has been fairly well established.
However, the postseason qualifiers won’t be quite so cut-and-dried, since the dismal NFC South must send at least one of its current sub-.500 teams to the playoffs. That means that when the regular season ends, one of those top six teams in the conference will be left on the outside looking in.
Even outside of the South, where the Falcons and Saints are tied at 5-7, division races across the board remain too close to call — the 9-3 Eagles are edging the 9-4 Cowboys, the 9-3 Packers are a game ahead of the 8-4 Lions, and the 9-3 Cardinals are in danger of losing their division lead to the surging 8-4 Seahawks. With Eagles/Seahawks, Eagles/Cowboys, Seahawks/Cardinals, and Packers/Lions contests still on the schedule, the last few weeks of the season will be very interesting. Five non-South playoff spots are up for grabs and six legit contenders are in the mix (seven, if you count the 49ers).
What do you think? Will the Cowboys have their usual December swoon and miss out on a postseason berth? Will the Cardinals’ losing streak continue? Will the Lions, despite upcoming home games against the Bucs and Vikings, be the team that misses out? Or will one of the other clubs currently occupying a playoff spot drop out? Cast your vote below, and feel free to weigh in with your comments as well.
Extra Points: Rice, Smith, Manziel, Panthers
No one worked out former Ravens running back Ray Rice today, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (via Twitter). There are a handful of teams with running back needs at the moment, but it would appear that there is little to no interest in the embattled running back. Lions coach Jim Caldwell recently said that the team hasn’t considered Rice while the Cardinals reportedly aren’t interested, despite the hip pointer injury suffered by starter Andre Ellington.
- In an interview on SiriusXM, Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said that Arizona called the 49ers to try and acquire quarterback Alex Smith after he was hired in 2013, according to Alex Marvez of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The talks of a potential intra-divisional trade went nowhere, however.
- Peter King of TheMMQB.com lays out why the Browns ought to start Johnny Manziel over Brian Hoyer this weekend against the Colts, making the case that it’s about not just this season, but about 2015 and beyond.
- The Panthers did little to improve their roster during the offseason and look nothing like the team that made a tremendous run last season, writes Terrance Harris of The Times-Picayune. Among the changes was overhauling their receiving core and bidding farewell to Steve Smith over the offseason.
- The Broncos, in addition to recently working out punter Chase Tenpenny, brought in several defensive players today for auditions, including FXFL linebacker Quandon Christian and former Monmouth cornerback Tevrin Brandon, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (all Twitter links). Wilson adds (via Twitter) that the team has an eye toward end-of-season reserve/futures contracts.
- Ultimately signing Garrison Smith to their practice squad, the Saints also recently tried out several other defensive tackles, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun, who tweets that the club took a look at Michael Brooks, Jermelle Cudjo, and Kyle Love.
NFC West Notes: Mathieu, Harbaugh, 49ers
The Seahawks have an empty spot on the roster, but head coach Pete Carroll won’t give any hints as to who might be heading to Seattle, write Gregg Bell of The News Tribune. The Seahawks thought they added a defensive back in Loucheiz Purifoy a few days ago, but a failed physical put a kibosh on that deal. More from the NFC West..
- Second-year Cardinals safety Tyrann Mathieu suffered a fractured and dislocated thumb, which requires surgery and will likely sideline him for three games while his hand is in a cast, a source tells ESPN’s Ed Werder (Twitter link). There’s no word yet on whether the Cards will make a roster move to add more depth to the secondary.
- 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh holds more cards in this looming drama than he’s getting credit for, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. If he doesn’t like the idea of joining a new team that will be hamstrung by the loss of one or more draft picks, he can tell the 49ers he’ll continue to remain on the job until he’s released from his contract. If Harbaugh makes it clear he’ll coach SF for 2015, the only way the 49ers will be able to keep that from happening will be to fire him or let him walk away without compensation.
- 49ers fullback Trey Millard and defensive lineman Kaleb Ramsey are now officially done for the year, as Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com writes. Today was the end of the 21-day practice window without a promotion to the 53-man roster for both players.
Practice Squad Updates: Tuesday
Here are Tuesday’s practice squad signings and cuts from around the NFL:
- The Giants signed former Chiefs guard Rishaw Johnson to their practice squad, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (via Twitter). Johnson worked out for Big Blue last week.
- After promoting multiple players from their practice squad to their active roster, the Giants added linebacker Paul Hazel to the taxi squad, per Jordan Raanan of NJ.com.
- Defensive back Lowell Rose has rejoined the Dolphins‘ practice squad, with the club placing wideout LaRon Byrd on the PS-IR list in a corresponding move, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
- Linebacker Marshall McFadden, who was released by the Rams over the weekend, has cleared waivers and signed back to the team’s practice squad, tweets Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
- Wide receiver Eric Thomas has replaced fellow wideout Travis Harvey on the Bills‘ practice squad, according to a team release.
Earlier updates:
- Adam Caplan of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter) that former Eagles linebacker Jake Knott is set to sign with the Dolphins‘ practice squad. Miami, with a full 10-man unit, will have to make a corresponding move before the addition becomes official.
- After losing Solomon Patton off their practice squad to the Buccaneers, the Cardinals have replaced him by signing wide receiver Ryan Spadola, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com.
- Cut by the Jaguars over the weekend, wide receiver Mike Brown cleared waivers and rejoined the team today, signing with Jacksonville’s practice squad, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (via Twitter).
- The Panthers promoted a pair of players to their active roster from the practice squad today, and began filling the newly-created openings by signing safety Kimario McFadden to the unit, the team announced (Twitter link).
- Defensive end Jordan Stanton, who was cut from the Giants‘ practice squad back in September, re-signed with the unit today, per agent Landon Betsworth (via Twitter). The team has yet to announce the move that will create an opening for Stanton.
NFC West Notes: Harbaugh, Cards, Carter
It’s still early on the west coast, but we’ve already got our first batch of links from out of one of the league’s most competitive divisions to get Tuesday started. Here’s the latest out of the NFC West:
- A Monday report indicated that the price tag in a trade for 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh could be somewhere in the ballpark of what the Buccaneers paid the Raiders for Jon Gruden 12 years ago. However, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk points out that the Browns nearly acquired Harbaugh for two third-round picks earlier this year in a deal that was “far closer to happening that anyone will admit on the record.” In Florio’s view, that sort of haul is more likely than a Gruden-esque package in any Harbaugh deal, particularly since the head coach won’t want his new team giving up a ton of draft picks before he even arrives.
- The Cardinals addressed their lack of veteran running back depth last week by bringing in Michael Bush, then saw their starting back – Andre Ellington – leave Sunday’s game with a hip pointer. Nonethless, Ed Werder of ESPN.com (Twitter link) hears from a source that Arizona has “no interest” in recently-reinstated free agent Ray Rice.
- Montreal Alouettes wide receiver Duron Carter, the son of former Vikings wideout Cris Carter, has drawn interest from about 15 NFL teams, and the Seahawks, 49ers, and Colts are all “very interested,” says Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. With the CFL season now over, Carter can begin visiting with NFL teams, though he can’t sign anywhere until February. According to La Canfora, the 23-year-old may take a little time off to allow his body to heal, then pursue individual visits after that.
Cardinals To Release Desmond Bishop
4:44pm: In related moves, the Cardinals promoted offensive lineman Anthony Steen from the taxi squad and signed Kelvin Palmer back to the taxi squad, according to Darren Urban AZCardinals.com (on Twitter).
1:14pm: The Cardinals have released veteran linebacker Desmond Bishop, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Bishop became expendable for Arizona with fellow linebacker Matt Shaughnessy on the mend.
The Cardinals signed Bishop to a contract in August, but they cut him just before the team’s Week 1 game. After weeks of tryouts that didn’t result in a deal, he circled back to Arizona on October 1st. The 30-year-old didn’t see much action on the field for the Cardinals, however, and he hasn’t recorded a tackle all season.
Bishop spent the first six years of his NFL career in Green Bay and established himself as a starter in 2010 and 2011. The former sixth-round pick racked up more than 100 tackles in each of those seasons, totaling eight sacks, 10 passes defended, and four forced fumbles in those two combined years. However, injuries have since derailed his career. Bishop suffered a ruptured hamstring in 2012 while with the Vikings. In 2013, his season was cut short after four games thanks to an ACL tear.
The veteran tried out for the Chiefs, Jets, and Dolphins in September, so it’s conceivable that those teams could take another look at him if there’s a need at the position.
NFC Notes: Harbaugh, Coughlin, Lions
Multiple reports have popped up suggesting the 49ers will attempt to trade head coach Jim Harbaugh this offseason, but Greg Gabriel of the National Football Post is skeptical of such sumors. In Gabriel’s view, there’d be little incentive for a team to give up a draft pick of any value for a head coach with one year left on his contract who may not even want to come to the team in question. While I’m not as entirely dismissive of the idea as Gabriel is, I think a trade could only happen if Harbaugh was allowed to negotiate with his suitor before the deal was consummated, perhaps working out an extension as part of the deal.
Here’s more from around the NFC:
- It’s nearly impossible to find someone in the Giants organization who hopes that the Tom Coughlin era is over, writes Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News. However, as Vacchiano concedes in the next breath, with the team sitting at 3-9 and coming off an embarrassing loss against the lowly Jaguars, co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch may have no choice but to part ways with the longtime head coach.
- Who could coach the Giants next, if this is Coughlin’s last season? Gary Myers of the New York Daily News examines some possible candidates.
- Lions general manager Martin Mayhew has received his share of criticism over the years in Detroit, but Kyle Meinke of MLive.com believes the GM deserves praise for putting together a roster that has Detroit in the thick of the playoff race this season, pointing to the Lions’ 2013 draft class as a feather in Mayhew’s cap.
- The new contract extension Patrick Peterson signed this summer has the Cardinals cornerback under increased scrutiny this season, and too often he’s not playing up to that deal, says Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap. Fitzgerald also identifies Washington wideout Pierre Garcon as a player whose performance as of late has been hurting his value.