AFC Rumors: Broncos, Luck, Landry, Bell
A recent report from a Denver radio station indicating that the Broncos are trying to trade for Bengals quarterback A.J. McCarron is “150% false,” a source tells Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post (on Twitter). Denver GM John Elway also took to Twitter to firmly deny the story. The Broncos seem content to roll into the season with either Paxton Lynch or Trevor Siemian as the starter. Meanwhile, the asking price on McCarron has been outlandish in the past. The Bengals were said to be seeking a first round pick for him earlier this offseason.
More from the AFC:
- “All indications” are that Colts quarterback Andrew Luck will avoid opening the regular season on the physically unable to perform list, GM Chris Ballard informed Tom Pelissero of NFL.com on Wednesday (Twitter link). This isn’t the first time Ballard has expressed confidence on this issue, though a report last week suggested Luck’s shoulder could force him to begin the season on the PUP list. Either way, it’s up in the air whether Luck will play Indianapolis’ Week 1 tilt against the Rams, per Ballard.
- The Dolphins and contract-year wide receiver Jarvis Landry still haven’t engaged in serious extension negotiations, and there’s a good chance he won’t get a new deal this year, writes Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. By signing Jay Cutler, the Dolphins subtracted $10MM in carryover money from next year’s cap. That figure could increase to $13MM if Cutler hits his incentives this season. Cutler’s presence will make it more difficult for the Dolphins to lock up Landry, then, as will the fact that the wideout is under investigation for battery. Landry’s off-field situation doesn’t faze the Dolphins, suggests Salguero, though he nonetheless points out that it would be wiser to extend the slot target if and when he’s cleared of wrongdoing.
- The Steelers expect running back Le’Veon Bell to end his holdout just before the regular season starts, according to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. In the meantime, the franchise-tagged star isn’t helping himself by staying away from training camp, GM Kevin Colbert told Bouchette. “Really, a holdout does not benefit him in any way,’’ Colbert said. “So, again, I hope that he sees the benefits of being here and comes in here sooner than later.” Because Bell hasn’t signed his $12.12MM franchise tender, the Steelers can’t fine him for any missed practices or preseason games. Bell’s already set to miss their first preseason contest Friday, but Bouchette notes that head coach Mike Tomlin probably wouldn’t have played him anyway. In the unlikely event Bell’s holdout lasts into the regular season, Pittsburgh will be able to dock him one-17th of his $12.12MM salary (about $713K) for each week missed.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
NFC Notes: Levy, Freeman, Elliott
Free agent linebacker DeAndre Levy has filed an injury grievance against his former team, the Lions, but head coach Jim Caldwell told reporters on Wednesday that the club handled his March release properly. “We followed everything by the rules,” Caldwell said, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “We did exactly what we were supposed to do. That’s probably all I have to say on that. I don’t know the details of all these discussions and those kinds of things.” It was a no-brainer for the Lions to release Levy, whose career is in jeopardy after back-to-back injury-marred years, but his contention is that they acted in bad faith upon passing him on a physical when he wasn’t healthy. In doing so, the Lions avoided having to pay Levy the $1.75MM injury guarantee in his contract. By ridding themselves of Levy, the Lions jettisoned a player whose social justice work rubbed some in the organization the wrong way, per Birkett. It’s unclear what certain members of the franchise objected to specifically, but Levy did question the NFL on CTE and speak out in support of Colin Kaepernick‘s activism last year.
More from the NFC:
- With the five-year, $41.25MM extension that the Falcons announced Tuesday, Devonta Freeman became the NFL’s highest-paid running back on a long-term deal. While it’s a nice contract for Freeman, it’s the latest sign that paydays aren’t what they used to be for backs, observes Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap. Contracts at the position have stagnated over the past several years, argues Fitzgerald, who notes that 12 pacts that RBs signed between 2003-07 were worth more than Freeman’s on a yearly basis when adjusting for inflation.
- Speaking of running backs, the NFL won’t announce whether it’s going to suspend the Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott until at least Thursday, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN. The league has been investigating Elliott for over a year on account of domestic violence allegations and other behavioral issues, and the slow process has frustrated both the reigning first-team All-Pro and the Cowboys.
- The Giants worked out offensive lineman Connor Bozick on Wednesday, per Ralph Vacchiano of SNY. However, the signing of Corin Brooks means the Giants are likely to pass on Bozick, an undrafted rookie from Delaware. Bozick spent a little over a week with Detroit during the spring. He hasn’t caught on with another team since then.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/9/17
Wednesday’s minor NFL transactions:
- The Colts have signed running back George Winn and two receivers, Valdez Showers and Brian Riley. The team cut receivers Tevaun Smith and Chris Biggs, both of whom were waived/injured, in corresponding moves. Winn had been out of work since the Giants waived him May 1. He’s best known for his work in Detroit, where he appeared in 19 games from 2014-15 and picked up 74 yards on 23 carries. The only other player in this group with pro experience is Smith, who played in two games with the Colts last year as an undrafted rookie. A Toronto native, Smith was actually a high pick in the Canadian Football League a year ago, going eighth overall to the Edmonton Eskimos, who still hold his rights.
- The Chiefs have waived receiver Corey Washington, ending his stint with the team after less than two weeks. Washington signed with the Chiefs on July 31, two-plus months after the Bills waived him in early May. The 25-year-old’s only NFL action came back in 2014 as a member of the Giants, with whom he caught five passes in 14 games.
- The Giants have signed offensive lineman Corin Brooks and waived/injured fellow O-lineman Jessamen Dunker. Both players went undrafted this year, with Brooks (Texas-Permian Basin) initially catching on with Kansas City in May and Dunker (Tennessee State) landing with the Giants around the same time.
- The Bengals have signed punter Will Monday and waived/injured receiver Jake Kumerow. Monday has also spent time with the Steelers and Chiefs since he went undrafted from Duke in 2016. Kumerow caught on with the Bengals back in 2015, when he went undrafted out of Wisconsin-Whitewater. He hasn’t appeared in a regular-season game.
- The Seahawks have re-signed safety Jordan Simone, an undrafted rookie from Arizona State whom they waived Monday, and added defensive lineman Greg Milhouse. The 23-year-old Milhouse went undrafted out of Campbell last year and had a short stint with the Giants.
- The Saints have waived/injured second-year receiver Jordan Williams-Lambert, tweets Joel A. Erickson of the Advocate. Taking his place will be fellow wideout De’Quan Hampton, an undrafted rookie from USC, per Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com (Twitter link).
Martavis Bryant Gets Preseason Clearance
Steelers wide receiver Martavis Bryant has taken a step toward full reinstatement. The NFL cleared him Wednesday to participate in preseason action, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert announced (Twitter link via James Palmer of NFL Network).
“Martavis Bryant has been informed by the NFL that he is now permitted to participate in all preseason activities, including practices and games,” said Colbert. “He will continue to be evaluated as to his readiness to participate in regular-season activities under the terms of his conditional reinstatement.”
The league suspended Bryant for all of last season for repeated violations of its substance abuse policy, finally granting him conditional reinstatement in April. The league decreed that Bryant would need to arrange “clinical resources” in Pittsburgh before suiting up for preseason practices or games, which he has done, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
If Bryant gets through the next few weeks without any off-field setbacks, the league figures to grant him full reinstatement in time for the regular season. The return of Bryant would give the Steelers’ Antonio Brown-led receiving corps yet another high-end weapon. While Bryant, 25, has only appeared in 21 of a possible 48 regular-season games, the 6-foot-4, 211-pounder has already amassed 76 receptions, 1,314 yards (17.3 yards per catch) and 14 touchdowns during his career.
Dallas Robinson contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Eagles Amend Brandon Graham’s Deal
Although Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham is underpaid relative to his production, he elected not to hold out this year. Now, the Eagles have given him an opportunity to rake in more money on his current deal, according to ESPN’s Field Yates. Graham, who’s halfway through the four-year, $26.5MM contract he signed with the Eagles in 2015, will have a chance to earn $1.5MM in incentives over the next two seasons.
On top of his $6.5MM base salary this year, Graham will make $250K if he tallies more than seven but fewer than nine sacks. Exceeding nine sacks would mean an additional $250K for Graham. However, even if Graham totals fewer than nine sacks, he’ll pile up $250K with either a Pro Bowl trip on the original ballot or first- or second-team All-Pro honors.
Graham went second-team All-Pro last season, but it’s worth noting that the 29-year-old has never hit the seven-sack mark in an individual campaign. His personal best (6.5) came in 2015. But getting to seven or eight sacks in 2017 would increase his $6.5MM base salary for 2018 by $250K, while nine to 11 would bump it up by $500K. Twelve or more, which could be especially unrealistic for a player who combined for that many from 2015-16, would give him a $750K raise. A Pro Bowl nod shouldn’t be out of reach, however, and earning a trip this season would up Graham’s ’18 salary by $250K.
A seven-year veteran, Graham is fresh off the first 16-start campaign of his career, and while his traditional numbers were solid in 2016 and in the preceding years, he has stood out more in the eyes of the advanced stats crowd. Graham ranked as Pro Football Focus’ second-best edge defender among 110 qualifiers last year, and the outlet has typically assigned him excellent grades.
Cowboys, Zack Martin “Deep In Talks”
An extension for Cowboys guard Zack Martin has seemed like a foregone conclusion for several months, but executive vice president Stephen Jones revealed Tuesday that negotiations between the two sides haven’t been easy. The parties are “deep in talks” at the moment, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, though a deal isn’t imminent (Twitter link).
With Tom Condon serving as his representative, the 26-year-old Martin has the same agent as the highest-paid guard in the league, the Browns’ Kevin Zeitler, who left Cincinnati for Cleveland’s five-year, $60MM offer in free agency. Martin would like to surpass that mark, Rapoport suggests, which explains why Jones believes that contract talks have been tough. While Martin has been an elite guard during his three years in the league, the Cowboys still own his rights for another two seasons. They’re not competing against other teams to keep him, then, whereas the Browns had to outdo various clubs’ offers to secure the 27-year-old Zeitler.
Martin is due to make a relative pittance in 2017 – $1.64MM – and scheduled to rake in $9.34MM next season as a fifth-year option player. That’s a high figure, of course, but it’s a good deal less than the $12MM per year for which he’s aiming. Nevertheless, the expectation is that the Cowboys will lock him up at some point.
Since Dallas chose Martin 16th overall in 2014, the ex-Notre Dame standout has started 48 straight regular-season games. Martin has combined durability with excellence along the way, having earned three Pro Bowl berths in as many years and a pair of first-team All-Pro nods. He finished as Pro Football Focus’ second-best guard last year, beating out the seventh-ranked Zeitler, and a key piece of PFF’s No. 2 overall O-line.
Colts Release Kendall Langford
The Colts announced that they have released defensive end Kendall Langford with a failed physical designation. Langford had been on the Colts’ active/physically unable to perform list recovering from the knee injury that ended his 2016 campaign in late October.
The 31-year-old Langford’s knee has been a problem since after the 2015 season, when he underwent arthroscopic surgery. Langford returned in time for Week 1 last year, but he only lasted seven games before the Colts placed him on injured reserve. All told, Langford played 301 snaps and tallied 10 tackles. Notably, he failed to register a sack for just the second time in his nine-year career and the first time since 2011, when he was with the Dolphins.
Last season was the second in Indianapolis for Langford, who joined the team in March 2015 on a four-year, $17.2MM pact. Langford came to the Colts with an impressive track record of durability and continued that through 2015, appearing in 128 consecutive games to begin his career, and notched a personal-best seven sacks in Indy during his first season with the club.
Since going in the third round of the 2008 draft, Langford has piled up 135 appearances (113 starts) out of a possible 144 with the Dolphins, Rams and Colts. By releasing him, the Colts have saved $4MM of his $4.25MM cap number for 2017 and left themselves with Henry Anderson, Hassan Ridgeway, Margus Hunt and fourth-round rookie Grover Stewart at defensive end.
Tyrone Crawford Suffers Ankle Injury
9:49pm: The preliminary diagnosis is a lateral ankle sprain, which isn’t a long-term injury, tweets Ed Werder. Crawford may miss the entirety of the preseason, but should be fine for the long-term, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
8:26pm: Cowboys defensive lineman Tyrone Crawford left practice on a cart Tuesday with a lower right ankle injury, Clarence Hill of the Star Telegram was among those to report (on Twitter). Crawford looked to be wiping tears from his eyes as he exited, per the Dallas Morning News’ Jon Machota (via Twitter), which doesn’t sound promising. The fear is that Crawford suffered a break as a result of getting tangled up on a running play with Ezekiel Elliott, tweets Mike Garafolo of NFL.com. However, the Cowboys “have no idea yet,” said executive vice president Stephen Jones (Twitter link via David Moore of the Dallas Morning News).
The 27-year-old Crawford is no stranger to serious injuries, having lost the entire 2013 campaign to a torn Achilles. The four-year veteran also missed time last season, sitting out two games, but he did pile up the third-most sacks (4.5) on a Cowboys defense that finished 13th in the NFL in that department. Crawford also trailed only Maliek Collins in snaps among Cowboys D-linemen (624), and he ranked a respectable 56th in performance among Pro Football Focus’ 110 qualified edge defenders.
Losing Crawford for an extended period would be the latest significant hit to a Dallas D-line that will go without the suspended trio of Damontre Moore, David Irving and Randy Gregory for two, four and 16 games, respectively, in 2017. Thanks in part to those players’ bans, the Cowboys’ top ends aside from Crawford are Benson Mayowa, who totaled a team-leading six sacks in a part-time role last season, the oft-injured Demarcus Lawrence and first-round rookie Taco Charlton.
It’s possible a major Crawford injury would lead to the Cowboys checking in on the free agent market for established pass rushers. Dwight Freeney, Mario Williams, Paul Kruger and Trent Cole are the most proven options available.
AFC Notes: Bolts, Ravens, Jets, Steelers
Chargers first-round wide receiver Mike Williams, who has been dealing with a back injury since May, is “running” and “doing well,” head coach Anthony Lynn told reporters, including Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com. Lynn suggested last week that Williams might not play at all this year, which came after the Chargers announced that the ex-Clemson star will miss all of training camp. However, they continue to hold out hope he’ll be healthy in time for the regular season, writes Eric Williams.
- Newly signed Ravens offensive tackle Austin Howard hasn’t practiced with the team since inking a three-year, $16.5MM deal last Friday, and it’s unclear why, per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. Howard underwent offseason shoulder surgery, so his recovery from that procedure could be at the root of the delay, notes Zrebiec. For his part, head coach John Harbaugh is content to leave Howard’s fate “in the trainer’s hands.”
- Free agent long snapper Andrew DePaola visited the Jets on Tuesday, tweets ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini, who relays that incumbent Tanner Purdum hasn’t looked great in camp. Purdum has been the Jets’ long snapper since 2010, so even though his position isn’t glamorous, it would be notable for the club to make a change there. DePaola was the Buccaneers’ long snapper for the previous three seasons. They non-tendered him in March.
- Center Mike Matthews, whom the Steelers waived Tuesday, will miss four to six months with a torn patellar tendon, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link). Matthews, the son of Hall of Fame offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, will go on injured reserve if another team doesn’t claim him via waivers.
- With Cairo Santos set to miss a week-plus with a groin injury, the Chiefs worked out free agent kickers John Lunsford and Conrad Ukropina on Tuesday, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). It doesn’t appear the Chiefs will sign either, though, given that they added fellow kicker Sam Ficken after auditioning Lunsford and Ukropina.
NFC Notes: Cowboys, 49ers, Eagles, Panthers
Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones has made it clear on several occasions that the team would like to extend three-time Pro Bowl guard Zack Martin, who’s entering the penultimate year of his rookie contract. Jones addressed Martin’s contract situation again Tuesday, telling Kate Hairopoulos of the Dallas Morning News: “We’re making our rounds there, it takes time, that’s usually how these things work. There’s a whole lot of zero progress and then all of a sudden you start to make some. And then you get to where you can get a deal done. It’s too early for me to speculate.” Jones added that while negotiations haven’t been easy, Martin wants to stay in Dallas and hasn’t set a deadline on contract talks.
More from the NFC:
- Rookie 49ers linebacker Donavin Newsom left practice in an ambulance Tuesday after suffering what looked like a severe neck injury, causing head coach Kyle Shanahan to end practice early. But Newsom dodged a worst-case scenario, fortunately, as the 49ers announced (via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area) that the undrafted rookie from Missouri didn’t suffer any cervical spine fractures. Doctors at Stanford Medical Center did diagnose Newsom with a concussion, though, and he remains under their observation.
- Safety Corey Graham‘s one-year deal with the Eagles features a guaranteed $1MM base salary, a $400K signing bonus, $200K in per-game bonuses and $200K in incentives, tweets Field Yates of ESPN.
- One of Graham’s teammates, 37-year-old punter Donnie Jones, would like to stay on the Eagles’ roster into his 40s, writes Paul Domowitch of Philly.com. “This is the only place I want to play,’’ said Jones, Philly’s oldest player. “I want to finish my career here. My goal is to play into my 40s. I’m getting closer. We’ll see.’’ Thanks to the three-year extension he signed last November, Jones is under contract through his age-39 season. In 2016, his fourth year as an Eagle, Jones finished 11th in average net yardage (40.7) and, in Football Outsiders’ view, was at the helm of the league’s 14th-best punting game.
- The Panthers waived safety Dean Marlowe on Tuesday because he’s dealing with a torn hamstring, per Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link). Marlowe, who appeared in five Panthers games from 2015-16, will go on injured reserve if no one claims him on waivers.