Terrell Suggs To Depart Ravens
It no longer looks like the Ravens will bring back Terrell Suggs. The decorated edge defender informed the team he will be signing elsewhere, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (on Twitter).
This comes shortly after a La Canfora report indicated the 16-year veteran will have options outside of Baltimore. It appears Suggs is ready to exercise them and become a true free agent. The 2003 first-round pick played out his four-year extension.
One of the best players in Ravens history, Suggs will leave as the team’s sack leader (Suggs’ 132.5 sacks are 62.5 more than second-place Peter Boulware) and the Ravens’ games-played leader. A seven-time Pro Bowler and the 2011 defensive player of the year, Suggs surpassed Ray Lewis to become the Ravens’ games-played leader, suiting up for his 229th career regular-season contest in Week 17.
As for where the 36-year-old defender may end up, some of Suggs’ teammates have mentioned the Cardinals as a landing spot, per JLC. The Cardinals employ Chandler Jones, but with Markus Golden hitting free agency and having not been especially effective since his ACL tear, Arizona has a need opposite Jones as it moves back to a 3-4 defense.
The Ravens have been trying to work out a deal for C.J. Mosley, but they are battling suitors with more cap space on that front. Suggs will not cost nearly what the linebacker stalwart will, but it appears he will be able to collect more money elsewhere.
Baltimore holds $26MM-plus in cap space but could face the prospect of seeing its three most accomplished defenders depart in one offseason, with Eric Weddle having been released last week. The Ravens led the NFL in total defense in 2018, with that unit being an essential part of the team’s first division title since 2012.
Extra Points: Golden, Jackson, Marshall
Here’s the latest from around the NFL:
- The Giants have interest in Cardinals free agent Markus Golden, according to Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). As per usual, free agent pass rushers are expected to cash in big, so Golden could be looking at a substantial deal. Giants defensive coordinator James Bettcher coached Golden in Arizona in 2016 when he notched 12.5 sacks, so it’s a logical fit.
- The Broncos placed a call on Malik Jackson after his release from Jacksonville, a source close to the player tells Mike Klis of 9News (on Twitter). However, the Broncos didn’t really need Jackson, and they have placed a greater emphasis on finding a nose tackle. Jackson, of course, inked a three-year, $30MM deal with the Eagles this morning.
- Five teams are interested in Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall, according to ESPN.com’s Josina Anderson (on Twitter). As previously reported, Marshall’s option for 2019 will not be exercised.
Cardinals To Release Jermaine Gresham
The Cardinals will release tight end Jermaine Gresham, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The move won’t be formally completed until Thursday, the day after the new league year begins, for cap reasons. 
Gresham, 31 in June, had just nine catches for 94 yards last season. Those were the lowest totals of any season in Gresham’s nine-year pro career.
The Cardinals, who badly need a reboot, were expected to drop Gresham this offseason. The move will save them roughly $2.47MM against the 2019 cap, though they’ll be saddled with $5.75MM in dead money.
Meanwhile, Gresham’s old job will be occupied by ex-Bills TE Charles Clay, who was inked to an early free agent deal in February. The Cardinals also have youngster Ricky Seals-Jones on the depth chart.
Markus Golden Hitting Free Agency
- The rumors of Markus Golden hitting the market look accurate, with AZCardinals.com’s Mike Jurecki tweeting the veteran edge rusher is set for free agency. The Cardinals and Golden engaged in talks earlier this offseason, but nothing of consequence emerged from those discussions. While Golden stands to benefit from the franchise tags handed out to the top-tier pass rushers who could have hit the market, and Jurecki posits a possible Golden reunion with former Cards DC James Bettcher via Giants signing, the former second-round pick has not been productive since the 2016 season. Golden’s ACL tear in 2017 sidetracked his career, halting the momentum he’d created with a 12.5-sack 2016.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/8/19
Here are today’s restricted free agent and exclusive rights free agent tender decisions:
RFAs
Second round tender:
- Bengals: OL Trey Hopkins
- Ravens: LB Patrick Onwuasor
Tendered at original-round level:
- Browns: WR Rashard Higgins
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Browns: DT Trevon Coley, DB Jermaine Whitehead
- Colts: WR Marcus Johnson
- Buccaneers: S Isaiah Johnson, OL Mike Liedtke
- Packers: TE Robert Tonyan
- Cardinals: TE Ricky Seals-Jones
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/8/19
Today’s minor moves from another busy day of action across the league:
Arizona Cardinals
- Re-signed: RB D.J. Foster
Dallas Cowboys
- Re-signed: DT Daniel Ross
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Released: LS Carson Tinker
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: K Jonathan Brown
Seattle Seahawks
- Re-signed: DB Akeem King
Cardinals Cut Antoine Bethea, Mike Glennon
The Cardinals will part with two players Friday, releasing Mike Glennon and Antoine Bethea, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets.
Glennon’s Arizona stay lasted one year; Bethea was a Cardinal for two seasons but will not have the chance to play for a third Cardinals regime. The veteran safety signed a three-year deal with the then-Bruce Arians-led Cards and stuck around for Steve Wilks‘ lone season. Kliff Kingsbury‘s team will go in a different direction.
These transactions will create nearly $6MM in cap space for the Cards, ballooning their figure north of $43MM.
This represents the second straight offseason the once-coveted Mike Glennon has been released. The Bears cut him after a one-season stay, and that led to him joining the Cards. Glennon played in two games last season, working behind Sam Bradford and then Josh Rosen, but only threw 21 passes. The former third-round pick is now back on the backup-QB market.
Linked to a possible Rosen trade, in advance of a Kyler Murray draft pick, the Cards have one less quarterback on their roster.
Bethea’s career has now lasted 13 years. He will be 35 by the time training camps begin. Despite his age, Bethea was a full-time Cards starter in 2018. After starting for the 2006 Super Bowl champion Colts as a rookie, the former sixth-round pick has played for three teams — a three-year stint with the 49ers coming in between Indianapolis and Arizona stays — and made three Pro Bowls, the most recent one coming in 2014 with San Francisco. But with so many safeties available this year, it is fair to wonder if Bethea has played his final game.
Steelers Trade Marcus Gilbert To Cardinals
The Steelers have agreed to trade tackle Marcus Gilbert to the Cardinals, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). In return, the Steelers will receive a draft pick late in the sixth round. 
[RELATED: Steelers, Bills Nix Antonio Brown Trade]
The Steelers have been working the phone lines in an attempt to move Gilbert and they found a taker quickly after word broke on Friday. Gilbert, 31, has missed 23 regular season games over the last three years, but he can be a difference-maker for Arizona if he stays healthy and out of trouble with the league.
Since 2011, Gilbert has started in all but one of his games and he has graded out as a top 20 tackle in Pro Football Focus’ rankings in the past. Even in 2018, a down season marred by injury, Gilbert placed as PFF’s No. 41 tackle in the NFL.
The Cardinals’ offensive line was downright porous last offseason and the pocket failed to hold up around rookie quarterback Josh Rosen. Gilbert should help on that front, though the Cardinals – armed with the No. 1 overall pick – still have a ton of work ahead of them.
Cardinals Will Pursue Mosley
- We heard yesterday that some Ravens players thought C.J. Mosley and Terrell Suggs could re-team in Arizona, and now there’s more smoke to that fire. The “Cardinals are expected to make a big push” for Mosley if the Ravens don’t lock him up before free agency starts, sources told Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com. Mosley to the desert seems to be picking up some steam, and it makes sense. Mosley is still only 26, and would be a very nice pickup for this rebuilding Cardinals team.
Terrell Suggs Could Leave Ravens?
Although the Ravens would like to re-sign Terrell Suggs, the veteran pass rusher will have a solid market in free agency, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link), who adds there is a “very real possibility” Suggs will not be in Baltimore in 2019.
The Ravens had made Suggs an offer, tweets La Canfora, but the two sides aren’t close on the numbers. While Baltimore expects to continue conversations with Suggs, there is no deal considered imminent. Although Suggs is entering his age-37 campaign, he’s given no hint that he’s ready to retire, and fully plans to continue his career next season.
The Cardinals could become a destination for both Suggs and fellow Ravens free agent C.J. Mosley, as La Canfora writes in a separate piece that the some of the duo’s Baltimore teammates believe the pair could head to the desert. The Ravens opted not to use the franchise tag on Mosley, which would have allowed him to collect a fully guaranteed salary of $15.443MM next year.
Despite his advanced age, there aren’t many signs Suggs is slowing down. He played 744 defensive snaps in 2018, second-most among Baltimore’s front seven defenders (trailing only Mosley). During that time, Suggs posted seven sacks and ranked as the NFL’s 36th-best edge defender among 103 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus.