49ers To Release Marquise Goodwin
Marquise Goodwin‘s return trip to San Francisco didn’t last long. The 49ers have released the receiver, a source told Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports (Twitter link).
In a bizarre transaction, we heard yesterday that Goodwin was reverting back to the 49ers from the Eagles per the terms of the trade they completed last year. At the time we heard Goodwin wasn’t long for the 49ers, and that turned out to be an understatement. Goodwin was dealt to Philly in a late-round pick swap last year, but opted out of the 2020 season and never played a down for the Eagles.
Goodwin had a breakout 2017 season with the 49ers after four years in Buffalo, when he erupted for 962 yards on only 56 catches for a 17.2 yards/reception average. That earned him a three-year, $20.3MM extension the following offseason, but things went downhill quickly after that.
He struggled with injuries the next two seasons, and was a disappointment when on the field, quickly getting buried on the depth chart. The Texas product with blazing speed turned 30 in November and will now hit a free agent market that hasn’t been too kind to wideouts so far.
Colts To Re-Sign Marlon Mack
Almost everybody had expected these two sides to move on, but they just can’t quit each other. The Colts are re-signing running back Marlon Mack, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network tweets.
It’s a one-year deal for $2MM, Pelissero reports. Mack began last season as Indy’s starter, but unfortunately tore his Achilles in Week 1. The saving grace of the timing of his injury was that it at least allowed him to get an early start on recovery for 2021. After Mack’s injury and the emergence of rookie Jonathan Taylor as the team’s new lead back, it had been widely assumed that Mack would be playing elsewhere next season.
In January, Colts GM Chris Ballard said “Marlon Mack deserves a contract, unequivocally. He deserves a good contract. I don’t know if we are going to be able to do that here.” Many understandably interpreted that as a sign that divorce was likely. Over the weekend we heard that Mack was progressing well in his recovery and was expected to be ready to go for training camp.
In all likelihood Mack tested the waters the past couple days, didn’t generate as much interest as he was hoping for, and opted to return to Indy on a cheap deal. A running back coming off an Achilles tear is enough to give anybody pause, but in 2019 Mack rushed for 1,091 yards and eight touchdowns in 14 games.
The South Florida product also only just turned 25 earlier this month, so he should have plenty left in the tank. With Mack, Taylor (who looked phenomenal down the stretch in 2020), and Nyheim Hines, the Colts will have one of the league’s best backfields in 2021.
Raiders Discussing Gabe Jackson Trade
The Raiders’ offensive line situation is a bit chaotic right now. Yesterday it was reported that center Rodney Hudson was getting cut, but this afternoon we heard they were trying to trade him and he was quickly dealt to the Cardinals for a third-rounder.
Now they’re trying to pull the same trick with guard Gabe Jackson, who we heard was going to be cut all the way back on March 3rd. Las Vegas is having trade discussions about Jackson now too, sources told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Jackson won’t be as easy to trade as Hudson was, and they won’t be getting a third-round pick back, but it sounds like there is legitimate interest.
Jackson has two years left on the five-year, $56MM extension he signed with the Raiders in 2017. A third-round pick in 2014, Jackson has spent all seven of his pro seasons with the Raiders. He’s been a full-time starter since his rookie year, and has only missed more than three games once, in 2019 when he missed five.
Jackson has always been a solid but not spectacular starter, but Jon Gruden felt he could no longer justify the double digit million AAV of his contract. They shopped him around this time last year, but nothing got done and he started all 16 games for Gruden in 2020.
Falcons Restructure Matt Ryan’s Deal
Atlanta has gotten under the salary cap just ahead of the start of the new league year. They’ve done it in part by restructuring the contract of Matt Ryan, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com writes. Zach Klein of WSB was first to tweet the news.
Atlanta converted $21MM of Ryan’s $23MM base salary for this upcoming season and turned it into a signing bonus to spread it out over the duration of his contract, which runs through 2023. The move knocked Ryan’s 2021 cap number down about $14MM, Rothstein writes.
As he points out, this isn’t breaking any new ground, as this is the third time Ryan’s contract has been restructured. The move allows the Falcons to get under the cap for now, and also could be indicative that they have Ryan in their long-term plans.
There had been some speculation the team would look to move on before too long, but this restructure makes it a lot harder to get out of his contract. He’ll now have a dead cap number north of $40MM in 2022. Ryan will turn 36 in May, and new coach Arthur Smith has insisted he isn’t planning on blowing things up. This move would be consistent with that.
Patriots Place Second-Round Tender On J.C. Jackson
The Patriots waited until the last minute, but they’re tendering J.C. Jackson. New England has placed the second-round tender on the restricted free agent cornerback, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets.
This one is interesting since many people had expected the Pats to place the first-round tender on Jackson. The second-round tender is worth around $3.4MM in 2021 while the first-round tender is worth around $4.8MM. Rapoport writes that Jackson “could see action in the RFA market,” which as he notes is pretty rare. But Jackson isn’t any old restricted free agent.
He played like one of the league’s better corners this past season, so Bill Belichick took a bit of a gamble here. If any team does decide to sign Jackson to an offer sheet, the Patriots would either match it, or let him walk and collect a second-round pick from that team. A first-round tender would’ve ensured he’s back in New England in 2021, but it’s not totally out of the question that a team would be willing to forfeit a second-rounder for him.
An UDFA out of Maryland in 2018, Jackson has been Belichick’s latest diamond in the rough find. He started five games as a rookie, and has shown tremendous ballhawking skills.
In 2018 he picked off three passes while only playing less than 38 percent of the defensive snaps. In 2019 he picked off five while only playing 68 percent. This past season he played 84 percent of the snaps, and intercepted a whopping nine passes, the second-most in the league. He also had 14 passes defended and three fumble recoveries.
Buccaneers To Re-Sign Aaron Stinnie
Aaron Stinnie stepped up in a big way when the Buccaneers needed him most, and now he’s getting rewarded. Tampa Bay has re-signed the guard, the team announced on Wednesday.
Terms of the deal weren’t immediately available, although it’s safe to assume it wasn’t a massive payday or anything. Stinnie was set to become a restricted free agent, but rather than deal with the tendering process the team just inked him to a new deal. Few around the league were familiar with Stinnie a few months ago, but he was suddenly thrust to prominence when he began starting during the Bucs’ Super Bowl run.
Stinnie started Tampa’s final three games, including the Super Bowl, after normal starter Alex Cappa went down in the Wild Card round. Incredibly, they were the first starts of Stinnie’s NFL career, but the moment wasn’t too big for him and he performed solidly.
An UDFA in 2018 out of James Madison, Stinnie originally signed with the Titans. After a year and a half in Tennessee, he was cut and claimed off waivers by the Bucs in November of 2019. It was a really cool story during the playoffs, and it’s nice to see him get brought back.
Raiders To Re-Sign Denzelle Good
The Raiders are the busiest team so far on Wednesday move. They’re re-signing another one of their own guys, this time locking up offensive lineman Denzelle Good, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets.
It’s a two-year deal for Good, Fowler reports. The deal is worth $8.36MM, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Good will see $3.19MM in guarantees.
Good signed a one-year deal with the Raiders for $1.7MM in 2019. Then he signed a one-year deal for $2.3MM last offseason. After becoming essentially a full-time starter for Las Vegas this past year, he finally gets the multi-year deal. A seventh-round pick of the Colts in 2015, Good spent his first three-plus seasons in Indy.
He started at least a handful of games each season, but was cut by the Colts late in 2018 and promptly claimed off waivers by the Raiders. He started five games in 2019, but started 14 this past year after Richie Incognito missed most of the season. Las Vegas has done a ton of shuffling to their offensive line this month. Of the Raiders’ Week 1 starting O-line from last season, only Kolton Miller remains with the team
Las Vegas has already cut guards Gabe Jackson and Richie Incognito and traded tackle Trent Brown to New England. Incognito is apparently still a candidate to return, but it sounds like the team views Good as one of their starters for 2021.
Raiders Looking To Trade Rodney Hudson
Yesterday, we heard the Raiders were cutting Pro Bowl center Rodney Hudson. Not so fast. Las Vegas is actually try to move Hudson via trade first, a source told Josina Anderson (Twitter link).
In a follow-up tweet, Anderson notes that there are talks of a trade involving a “second day pick.” A Day 2 pick would be a pretty nice haul for a player they were about to cut. This has been a trend in the NFL recently, for reports to leak that a player was getting cut only for the team to try to trade him at the last minute, sometimes successfully sometimes not. It was reported the Saints were going to cut defensive tackle Malcom Brown, and then they traded him to the Jags yesterday.
The Dolphins were set to cut Kyle Van Noy, then tried to trade him, only to ultimately release him after finding no takers. Whether Hudson is traded or released, it still represents a dramatic overhaul of the Raiders’ offensive line. This move follows Las Vegas’ cuts of Gabe Jackson and Richie Incognito and its trade of Trent Brown to New England.
Hudson, 31, graded as Pro Football Focus’ No. 8 overall center last season. The Raiders signed him to a three-year, $33.75MM extension in 2019. In six seasons with the team, he’s missed only four total games.
The Florida State product and former Kansas City Chief has made the Pro Bowl in three of the last five seasons and was a second-team All-Pro in 2019.
Cardinals To Sign A.J. Green
The Cardinals’ already impressive receiving corp just added another big name. Arizona has agreed to terms on a deal with A.J. Green, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).
Green had been expected to leave Cincinnati all along. It’s a one-year deal worth “up to” $8.5MM with $6MM of that being guaranteed, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The base value is $6MM with incentives that can push it higher, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network tweets. While Cardinals fans might be quick to get excited about this news, it could also indicate that fellow free agent Larry Fitzgerald is unlikely to return. Fitzgerald, 37, could decide to hang up his cleats or even continue playing with another team.
Green is now the second first-round pick from the 2011 draft the Cards have added this offseason after they already signed J.J. Watt. If they bring back Patrick Peterson, they’ll have three of the top 11 picks from that draft on the roster. Once one of the best receivers in the game, injuries limited Green to just nine contests in 2018 and he then missed the entire 2019 season.
He returned this past year to appear in all 16 games, but his role was greatly reduced in new coach Zac Taylor’s offense. He finished with just 47 catches for 523 yards, easily the lowest total of his career, including the nine-game campaign. His 694 yards in nine 2018 games would’ve projected out to 1,233 yards for a full season, so there are reasons to believe he’s still got something in the tank.
While it ended on a bad note, the fourth overall pick of the 2011 draft had an incredible run in Cincy. He set all sorts of franchise records while making seven Pro Bowls and three All-Pro teams. He didn’t seem to see eye to eye with the new Bengals management, and there was even some speculation back in October that he wanted to be traded although the wideout denied it.
Green will turn 33 in July, and he certainly won’t be the number one option in an offense that features DeAndre Hopkins. But he’s got a chip on his shoulder, and perhaps Hopkins’ presence will free things up for him. Here’s to hoping he rejuvenates his career in the desert.
Eagles Give Permission To Zach Ertz To Seek Trade
The Zach Ertz / Eagles saga appears to be nearing an end. Philadelphia has given the veteran tight end permission to seek his own trade, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).
Rapsheet notes that “several teams have been engaged.” The two sides have been headed for divorce for quite some time now, and things have been ramping up lately. A little over a week ago we heard that a trade could come soon, and it was reported over the weekend that the Eagles were seeking a third or fourth-round pick for Ertz.
So far nobody has been willing to meet that asking price since Ertz is now 30 and coming off a down year. Meanwhile, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports that Ertz isn’t looking for a new contract as part of a trade and is willing to play out the final year of his deal, which should make things a bit easier (Twitter video link).
From Philly’s perspective they’ve got Dallas Goedert waiting in the wings, which makes Ertz expendable. He clashed with management this past year, and even got into a heated argument with GM Howie Roseman at one point over his contract.
Ertz has one more season left on his current deal with an $8.25MM salary and $12.4MM cap hit. Trading or cutting him would save the Eagles almost $5MM in cap space, but also leave almost $8MM in dead money. Ertz is coming off easily his worst season as a pro, but he made the Pro Bowl in 2019 and was a first-team All-Pro in 2018.
The team reportedly considered trading him around last year’s deadline, but an ankle injury nixed those talks. Ertz has been easily one of the best tight ends in the league the past handful of years, and it’s not hard to envision him having a bounce back campaign in 2021 wherever he lands.