Latest On Jadeveon Clowney
Jadeveon Clowney is surprisingly still on the market this late in the process, and he’s one of the most interesting situations left to monitor. A couple of days ago we heard that Clowney had lowered his asking price from around $20MM a year to $17-18MM annually after not receiving the offers he was hoping for.
Now we’ve got a new batch of notes on his status, courtesy of John Clayton of ESPN 710 Seattle. Clayton writes that the Seahawks are taking a wait and see approach with Clowney and are being patient. He thinks Seattle might be willing to only pay between $13-15MM for him, which would be a steep discount. New York has been talked about as an interested team, but Clayton writes to “scratch the thoughts on the Jets.”
Clayton writes the Jets’ discussions consisted of only one phone call to his agent and that they haven’t made him an offer, so it sounds like their interest has possibly been a bit overstated. Clayton acknowledges that the Titans are interested, but thinks it might be hard for Tennessee to fit him into their cap after they already gave fellow outside linebacker Vic Beasley a $9MM contract.
Of course Titans head coach Mike Vrabel coached Clowney during their time in Houston, so maybe he’ll be extra motivated to make it work. Clayton opines that had Clowney lowered his demands in the first couple of days of free agency, he would’ve had a deal. The Seahawks by all accounts want to bring him back, and it sounds like they might end up getting a great deal if Clowney’s leverage continues to decrease. We’ve also heard the next best free agent rusher Everson Griffen is interested in joining the Seahawks, so that could be their backup plan if Clowney heads elsewhere.
Chiefs To Sign Ricky Seals-Jones
The Chiefs are adding a tight end behind Travis Kelce. Kansas City has agreed to terms with free agent Ricky Seals-Jones, a source told Terez Paylor of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
In a follow-up tweet, Paylor notes it’s a one-year deal. It’s an interesting developmental pickup for the Chiefs, as Seals-Jones only turned 25 last month. He signed with the Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2017, and made some noise down the stretch of his rookie season. There was a lot of buzz surrounding the Texas A&M product heading into his second season, but he was arrested that summer and ended up underwhelming.
In 15 games and five starts in 2018, he caught 34 passes for 343 yards and a touchdown. He was waived at final cuts in 2019, and claimed by the Browns. The Steelers put in a claim as well. He ended up with 229 yards and four touchdowns in 14 games with Cleveland last year. He’s flashed plenty of potential in the past and the Chiefs don’t have much else behind Kelce, so he should be in line to be Kansas City’s number two in 2020.
NFC Notes: Foles, Trubisky, Bears, Ifedi, Lewis, Giants
We heard earlier today that the Bears were planning an open quarterback competition between Nick Foles and Mitchell Trubisky, but that might not be entirely accurate. Both general manager Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy insisted during a teleconference with the media that it would be a fair battle and even that Trubisky would take the first snaps whenever they hit the field for their first practices, but Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune is skeptical.
Trubisky is the incumbent and is being treated as such for now, but Biggs thinks the team is just paying lip-service to the former number two overall pick. “Short of the 31-year-old falling on his face or being injured,” it’s Foles’ job to lose, Biggs writes. It makes sense why Pace doesn’t want to admit defeat with Trubisky, considering he traded up to draft him so early in 2017. Biggs writes that it’s the inverse of the situation the Bears had in 2017, when Mike Glennon was technically the starter but everyone knew Trubisky would be taking over sooner rather than later. As of right now, Foles looks like a heavy favorite to be under center Week 1.
Here’s more from the NFC:
- Speaking of the Bears, one big move they made this offseason was signing offensive lineman Germain Ifedi away from the Seahawks. The 2016 first-round pick played both tackle and guard extensively during his time in Seattle, and Chicago is planning to play him in side at guard Pace said, via Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Ifedi was a full-time starter the past few years with the Seahawks, but never lived up to his draft status.
- Running back Dion Lewis agreed to sign with the Giants back on March 23rd, and now we’ve got the details. New York got a pretty good deal, as Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com tweets that Lewis received a one-year deal worth $1.55MM with nothing guaranteed. New Giants coach Joe Judge was with Lewis during their time with the Patriots. Lewis turns 30 in September but doesn’t have too much tread on his tires since he’s never been a workhorse back. Lewis signed a four-year, $20MM deal with the Titans in 2018, but lasted only two years in Tennessee after Derrick Henry emerged as the undisputed featured back. He should backup Saquon Barkley in 2020.
- In case you missed it the Lions are likely looking to trade down from the third overall pick, and they could have their eye on Ohio State corner Jeff Okudah.
Seahawks Waive S Tedric Thompson
Apr. 2: Contrary to the earlier report suggesting that Thompson had fully recovered from his torn labrum, Brady Henderson of ESPN.com says that the 25-year-old was waived with a failed-physical designation (Twitter link). Thompson has cleared waivers and is now free to sign with any team, but given his uncertain health status and the restrictive policies currently governing free agent physicals, he may not find a new home for a while.
Mar. 31: Tedric Thompson‘s time with the Seahawks is coming to an end. Seattle will waive the safety, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
We heard a couple of weeks ago that Thompson had been given permission to seek a trade, but obviously they weren’t able to find any takers. Thompson had been set to earn $2.3MM in 2020, and the Seahawks will save $2.1MM by cutting him. Thompson only appeared in six games last season because of a torn labrum, and a source tells Anderson that Thompson is now fully healthy. Before going down he had started all six games and had two interceptions, but received poor marks from Pro Football Focus.
Seattle drafted Thompson in the fourth-round out of Colorado back in 2017 and after playing sparingly as a rookie, he started ten games in 2018. The Seahawks’ defense was a bit of a disappointment last season, and Thompson was made especially expendable by their trade for safety Quandre Diggs last fall.
Thompson is still only 25, and with his recent starting experience he should be scooped up pretty quickly by another team. Seattle will roll with Diggs and Bradley McDougald as their starting safeties, and are hoping their recent trade for Quinton Dunbar will help bolster the secondary.
Colts Notes: Brady, Rivers, Brissett, Vinatieri
We heard last week that Tom Brady‘s camp had expressed interest in the Colts, but that the interest wasn’t mutual as Indy opted to roll with Philip Rivers. But Indianapolis at least looked into the opportunity, as head coach Frank Reich revealed in a video news conference Tuesday, via Joel Erickson of the Indianapolis Star. “I watched all of his tape from the last two years,” Reich said. “I think he’s still playing at a super-, super-high level. We know he’s the best of all time for a reason.” Still it wasn’t enough to move him in a different direction, as Reich said “we really felt like Philip was the right guy for us.”
“For us, we got the guy we thought was the right fit,” he explained. “I don’t know if I’d say (Brady) wasn’t a fit. There’s always a fit when you have a great player, when you have maybe the best player of all time. There’s a lot of factors that go into these things.” One of those factors is of course Reich’s familiarity with Rivers, who he coached with the Chargers. Brady was likely attracted to the Colts’ coaching staff and offensive line, although things worked out alright for him with Tampa Bay. Still, the fact that the Colts explicitly chose Rivers over Brady is interesting.
Here’s more from Lucas Oil Stadium:
- Reich reiterated that he didn’t feel like Rivers had lost anything physically, and called it a “crazy unique opportunity” to link back up with his old pupil, per Mike Wells of ESPN.com. “Just being there on the inside in the three years that I was and knowing the quarterback position like I do, I was so confident physically he was the right player and he had not lost anything,” Reich said Tuesday. “I didn’t notice any physical gifts diminishing.” He continued to rave about his new signal-caller, saying “when I tell you he’s elite intellectually, he’s at the top. There are a group of guys in the football world I would put in that category, not everybody gets those gifts. He has them.” Rivers will turn 39 in December and is coming off a down year, but he was one of the best quarterbacks in the league in 2018. Not having to play 16 road games per year like he did in Los Angeles should help.
- The acquisition of Rivers is sending Jacoby Brissett to the bench, and Reich spoke about him for the first time. “Honestly, he wasn’t happy about it,” Reich said after revealing he called Brissett shortly before they announced the signing of Rivers, via Wells. “But he’s a great teammate and a great leader, and I’m sure he’ll be good. Even though Jacoby isn’t a starter, but there’s nothing saying he can’t play,” he said. “We’re wide open. (Offensive coordinator) Nick (Sirianni) and I have been talking: What does it look like if Jacoby plays five plays a game? Seven plays a game? We’re open to that.” Brissett now has a $21.4MM cap hit to be a backup, so it makes sense they’d want to utilize him somehow.
- Adam Vinatieri struggled mightily last season before being shutdown with a knee injury and having surgery. But despite now being 47, the legendary kicker is still contemplating playing another season, according to Jim Ayello of the Indianapolis Star. Reich said that he had seen Vinatieri at the facility rehabbing before COVID-19 closed it. “(We plan) to have a sitdown with Adam and see where he’s at once he’s a little further along in that process,” Reich said. Reich said Vinatieri hasn’t yet made a decision on whether or not to retire. If he decides to keep playing, it’s entirely possible he’ll have to find a new team. Reich and general manager Chris Ballard caught some flak for sticking with Vinatieri so long when he was struggling, and their replacement Chase McLaughlin played well down the stretch. Vinatieri missed eight field goals and six extra points before getting shutdown with four games to go last year. When he underwent surgery, he said he wanted to keep the hope for a 25th season alive.
Redskins’ Brandon Scherff Signs Franchise Tender
Brandon Scherff is officially headed back to Washington. The standout guard has signed his franchise tender to remain with the Redskins, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
As Schefter notes, him signing this early will require him to be at training camp, provided it proceeds as scheduled in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Scherff became the first guard to get franchise-tagged since all the way back in 2011. He’s set to make $14.8MM in 2020 under the tag. The tag system groups all offensive linemen together, which explains why it’s so rarely used on a guard. Scherff has certainly proved himself worthy of being the exception, making the Pro Bowl in three of the past four seasons.
The only time he didn’t make it in that span was in 2018, when he appeared in only eight games due to a torn pec. He was again banged up last year, missing five games with elbow and shoulder issues. The fifth-overall pick in the 2015 draft, Scherff is one of the few consistent players on Washington’s offense.
Given the continued uncertainty surrounding left tackle Trent Williams, it makes sense why the Redskins would want to take no chances with their other stud offensive lineman. The two sides still have until July to work out a long-term extension.
Seahawks Release Ed Dickson
Seattle continues to clear cap space bit by bit. The Seahawks have released veteran tight end Ed Dickson, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).
The move comes shortly after Seattle cut safety Tedric Thompson to save a little bit of cash as well. Rapoport notes that Dickson had been set to earn $3MM in 2020, and that the Seahawks will save “most of it” by cutting him. Dickson had a very disappointing run in Seattle after signing a three-year, $10.7MM deal there in 2018. He missed the first six games of that season on the NFI list, and then missed all of last year with a knee injury.
Oddly, he started the year on injured reserve, was activated in November, but then nearly immediately placed back on IR without playing a game after he failed to recover from his knee injury. The circumstances of the knee issue were always a mystery, and it’s unclear if he’s now fully healthy.
A third-round pick of the Ravens back in 2010, Dickson has always been more of a blocker than a pass-catcher. He has had some reasonably productive years though, catching 30 passes for 437 yards with the Panthers in 2017, his last healthy campaign. Set to turn 33 in July, he’ll likely struggle for much guaranteed money assuming he wants to keep playing.
NFL Officially Expands Playoffs To 14 Teams
The NFL has officially ratified a major change to their season. Owners voted by phone today to approve a 14-team playoff bracket starting with this upcoming season, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).
We heard yesterday that this was the expected outcome. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweeted out a release from the league with a full breakdown of the new postseason schedule. An extra team from each conference is getting a wild card berth, and only one team from each conference will now earn a first-round bye. Wild Card Weekend will now have six games instead of four, with three each on Saturday and Sunday.
Each division winner that isn’t the top seed in their conference will host a game on Wild Card Weekend. The NFL has used the 12-team playoff format for the past 30 years. The elimination of one bye might be even more significant than the extra team getting in. Since 2012 when the Ravens did it, no team has made it to the Super Bowl without having a bye.
The expanded playoff format was part of the contentious CBA negotiations. Obviously, the extra nationally televised playoff games will bring in significant new revenue for the league. The scheduling of the new playoff games and the networks they’d air on had been the two biggest question marks.
In the release, they announced that CBS and NBC would both broadcast an additional wild card game. Interestingly, the release also announced that CBS’ game would have a separately produced telecast of the game to air on Nickelodeon, specifically “tailored for a younger audience.” The other major change on the horizon is moving to a 17-game schedule, although that won’t happen this season.
Extra Points: Broncos, Ravens, Madden
It was a disappointing offseason for defensive lineman Shelby Harris, who ended up re-signing with the Broncos on a one-year deal worth $3.25MM. Harris is coming off a career-year where he started all 16 games and had a career-high six sacks and nine passes defended, so he was expecting a big payday in free agency. His market wasn’t what he anticipated, so he ended up back in Denver on a prove-it deal. Harris himself even used that language when explaining his thought process in a recent interview with Mike Klis of Denver 9 News (Twitter link).
“Well, after the numbers weren’t what we wanted, I felt like let’s do another 1-yr/ prove it to prove I can do it again and be able to hit the market again next year or re-up with the Broncos. Just another chance to go prove myself,” Harris explained. The 28-year-old had previously expressed that due to his age, he felt like this was his one shot at a big contract. Harris came out of nowhere, and has been a nice success story. A seventh-round pick of the Raiders out of Illinois State in 2014, he appeared in only eight games his first two years and spent 2016 out of the league. He suddenly emerged as a part-time starter with Denver in 2017, and has been a key player for them ever since.
Here’s more from around the league on a quiet Sunday night:
- After the Ravens’ deal for Michael Brockers fell through due to concerns over his ankle, they immediately started looking for defensive line help elsewhere. They ended up signing former Broncos defensive end Derek Wolfe, and they were apparently interested in Ndamukong Suh before he re-signed with the Bucs. Now we’ve got word of one more defensive lineman they discussed, as Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports tweets they were also talking with Mike Daniels. This is the first we’ve heard of interest in Daniels this offseason, and it’s not that surprising that the 2017 Pro Bowler’s market has been quiet given that his past two campaigns have been cut short due to injury. After getting released by the Packers last summer the Iowa product signed a one-year, $9.1MM deal with the Lions, but he ended up appearing in only nine games with two starts before landing on injured reserve. Now on the wrong side of 30, he probably won’t get too much guaranteed money wherever he ends up.
- With the new CBA approved, every NFL player is getting one under the radar bonus. Players will now be sent their last couple of ‘Madden checks,’ which had been held back in a fund for a potential work stoppage, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network tweets. Active players will get $17.6K for 2017 and $16.9K for 2018 for their participation in the popular video game, Pelissero reports, with $1K for practice squad players. The payments for the 2019 season will be sent out this fall, he notes.
POLL: Where Will Cam Newton Sign?
The quarterback carousel has mostly come to a stop, and a few big names were left without starting gigs when the dust settled. The highest profile signal-caller on the open market is Cam Newton, and it’s going to be very interesting to see where he ends up signing.
Newton won an MVP and led the Panthers to the Super Bowl in 2015, but his past two campaigns have been derailed by injuries. Last year he was limited to only two games because of a foot injury. The year before that he started the season off hot, but fell apart down the stretch once he started having shoulder issues. Since teams are unable to host free agents on visits due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it might be harder for Newton to find a home for a while with teams’ doctors being unable to examine him in person.
The Chargers are the betting favorite at sportsbooks offering odds on where Newton will end up, and it’s not hard to see why. Los Angeles is arguably a quarterback away from being a legit Super Bowl contender, and on paper they might have the most talented defense in the league. Tyrod Taylor is currently slated as the team’s starter and while he has been solid at times in the past with Buffalo, he doesn’t have the upside that Newton does.
The Chargers own the sixth overall pick however, and they’ve been linked to drafting a passer in the first-round. We also heard a couple weeks ago that they were no longer looking to add a veteran after they whiffed on Tom Brady, although that was before Newton became a free agent.
The Jaguars are another option, as they’re currently rolling with second-year player Gardner Minshew at quarterback and not much else. Minshew showed flashes last year, but he was hardly consistent. The Redskins are another conceivable suitor as they could reunite Newton with his old coach Ron Rivera, although we heard before he was released that they weren’t expected to be interested.
The Dolphins don’t have a firmly entrenched starter right now, but they’re widely expected to draft a quarterback in the first-round. If they surprisingly decide to pass on one, Newton could make sense as an upgrade over Ryan Fitzpatrick. Then there’s the Patriots. New England has a lot of uncertainty at the position after Brady’s departure, and all they have right now is the unproven Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer. Newton being paired with Bill Belichick would certainly be interesting, to say the least.
So where will the former first overall pick be playing next year? Vote in the poll below (link for app users) and show your work in the comments!