Giants Sign Dwayne Harris
WEDNESDAY, 9:41pm: The Giants announced that Harris’ signing is official, Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News tweets.
TUESDAY, 3:46pm: The Giants have signed former Cowboys receiver and kick returner Dwayne Harris, according to Charles Davis of Fox Sports. Rand Getlin of Yahoo Sports! reports that Harris’ deal is for five years at $3.5MM per season. It includes $7.1MM in guarantees.
Dallas chose Harris in the sixth round of the 2011 draft and he ultimately appeared in 45 games for the club, all since 2012. The 27-year-old caught 33 passes during his time with the Cowboys and finished ninth in the NFL in both kick and punt return yardage in 2014. He was second in the league in both kick return yardage and yards per return in 2013.
Rams Acquire Case Keenum
WEDNESDAY, 6:22pm: The deal is finalized and turned in, even though the Rams have yet to announce it, Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch tweets.
TUESDAY, 4:58pm: The Rams have sent a seventh-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft to the Texans for quarterback Case Keenum, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. St. Louis’ acquisition of Keenum comes on the heels of its stunning quarterback swap with Philadelphia that sent Sam Bradford to the Eagles for Nick Foles on Tuesday afternoon.
Keenum will rejoin the Rams – whom he spent some of the 2015 season with – and compete for a role as one of Foles’ backups. The 27-year-old has appeared in 10 games since signing with Houston as an undrafted free agent in 2012, tossing 11 touchdowns against eight interceptions for a 76.8 passer rating.
Jabaal Sheard To Visit Patriots
Free agent outside linebacker Jabaal Sheard will visit the Patriots tonight, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN (via Twitter).
The 24-year-old Sheard entered the NFL in 2011 as a second-round pick of the Browns and has appeared in 61 games, totaling 23 sacks and seven forced fumbles. Only two of those sacks and none of those forced fumbles came last season, but Pro Football Focus (subscription required) still ranked Sheard a solid 16th out of 46 qualifying 3-4 outside linebackers in 2014. He ranked an even more impressive 10th out of 42 in 2013.
Earlier Tuesday, ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss wrote that Sheard would make sense for the Pats. Per Reiss, the Pats spent 73.5% of the time in sub packages last year, and Sheard “would add another “joker” to the team’s versatile stable of pass-rushing linebackers.”
If the Patriots are unable to ink Sheard to a deal, the Buccaneers, Bengals and Seahawks are other possible suitors, Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports tweeted Monday.
Chargers To Re-Sign Ricardo Mathews
The Chargers and defensive lineman Ricardo Mathews have agreed to a one-year contract, tweets Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports. Financial terms of the agreement have not yet been disclosed.
A seventh-round pick in 2010, Mathews spent the first four seasons of his career as a Colt and latched on with the Chargers in 2014. The 27-year-old made 21 tackles and 1.5 sacks in 12 games – which earned him a 19th-place ranking out of 46 qualifying 3-4 defensive ends at Pro Football Focus (subscription required) – and obviously impressed Chargers brass enough to merit another deal.
Darrelle Revis Has $48MM Offer
Cornerback Darrelle Revis might be the best player on the free agent market and, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, he’s on the verge of being paid like it. La Canfora reports that the Revis camp has informed teams that they have a three-year, $48MM offer on the table. The deal is said to include a whopping $40MM in guarantees, and La Canfora’s “sense” is that the offer came from the Jets. Per La Canfora, the Patriots have offered Revis over $30MM in guarantees and the Chiefs are also in the mix for his services.
Earlier Tuesday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter linked the Steelers and Bills to Revis, though Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News tweeted that the Bills aren’t after the corner. Meanwhile, Jason Cole of Bleacher Report added that the Packers are also in the sweepstakes.
If Revis signs with the Jets, it would mean rejoining the team with which he spent the first six seasons of his career. The Jets used a first-round pick in 2007 on Revis, who proceeded to rack up 19 interceptions and four Pro Bowl bids in New York. Revis missed most of the 2012 season, his last one with the Jets – who subsequently traded him to Tampa Bay in April of 2013 for a first-rounder.
After just a one-year stint with the Buccaneers, who released him last winter, Revis signed with New England and became an integral piece of a Super Bowl-winning team. The 29-year-old appeared in all 19 of the Patriots’ games (playoffs included) and ranked as the fourth-best cornerback in the NFL during the 2014 regular season, according to Pro Football Focus’ grading system (subscription required). He also earned his sixth Pro Bowl nod and fourth First-Team All-Pro selection.
The Pats declined Revis’ $20MM for 2015 on Monday, making him a free agent, and have been trying to keep him on a long-term deal.
Eagles, DeMarco Murray Have Mutual Interest
The running back position has been one of the biggest stories of the Eagles’ offseason so far, and it appears it’s going to get even more interesting. According to ESPN’s Adam Caplan, the Eagles and the best free agent back available, DeMarco Murray, have mutual interest.
The Eagles are all too familiar with Murray from his four years as a member of the NFC East rival Cowboys, with whom he eclipsed the 1,000-yard plateau the previous two seasons. Murray especially dazzled in 2014, amassing NFL bests in rushing attempts (392), yards (1,845) and touchdowns (13, tied with Seattle’s Marshawn Lynch). Those numbers will certainly help Murray in his quest to earn a big contract, and it might come with a Philadelphia team looking to fill a big void in its backfield.
After a weeklong waiting period, the Eagles completed a trade that sent four-time 1,000-yard rusher LeSean McCoy to Buffalo for linebacker Kiko Alonso on Tuesday. McCoy spent the first six years of his career in Philly and made three Pro Bowls, but head coach and personnel czar Chip Kelly elected to move in another direction. That direction was supposed to lead Kelly to longtime 49er Frank Gore, but the 10-year veteran reneged on a deal with the Eagles and is leaning toward signing with the Colts.
Now, with the Eagles having dealt McCoy and swung and missed on Gore, they turn their attention to Murray. It’ll undoubtedly cost the Eagles a significant amount of money to sign Murray, whom other teams are chasing. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported Tuesday that the Cardinals, Jaguars and Buccaneers are possible landing spots for the 27-year-old, while Todd Archer of ESPN.com wrote that the Cowboys are still in play. Per Archer, the Cowboys spoke to Murray’s agent, Bill Johnson, on Monday night. Nevertheless, Murray has since become a free agent and he might end up trading one NFC East team’s uniform for another.
Vikings Sign Shaun Hill
The Vikings have signed veteran quarterback Shaun Hill, according to Ross Jones of Fox Sports (via Twitter). Hill and Minnesota agreed to a two-year deal worth up to $7MM, per Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.
Hill, 35, will take the place of Matt Cassel – whom the Vikings traded to Buffalo last week – as Teddy Bridgewater‘s backup. Hill has played for four teams, including a stint with the Vikings from 2002-05. His latest stop was in St. Louis, where he played nine games (eight starts) last year and threw eight touchdowns against seven interceptions for an 83.9 passer rating.
Falcons To Sign Reed, Durant
The Falcons have added a pair of linebackers, signing Brooks Reed and Justin Durant to deals, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter). Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports that Reed’s contract will be worth $22MM over five years. Details of Durant’s deal have not yet been released.
Reed spent the first four years of his career in Houston, where he started 52 of a possible 60 games and racked up 14.5 sacks. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) rated him the 26th-best 3-4 OLB in the NFL out of 46 qualifiers last season.
In signing with the Falcons, Durant joins his fourth team in what will be his ninth year. He spent 2014 with the Cowboys and missed 10 games with a torn bicep, amassing 49 tackles in six contests. Durant finished 17th out of 40 qualifiers in Pro Football Focus’ 4-3 OLB rankings. The Cowboys “hoped” to retain the 29-year-old, according to David Moore of the Dallas Morning News
Both Reed and Durant are expected to beef up a Falcons defense that finished dead last in yardage allowed and 27th in points surrendered last season. They’ll also help fill the void of ex-Falcon Sean Weatherspoon, who agreed to a deal with the Cardinals.
Colts Sign Kendall Langford
WEDNESDAY, 1:32pm: Langford did pretty well on his new deal with the Colts — it’s a four-year pact worth $17.2MM, and features $5MM in year-one money, tweets Tom Pelissero of USA Today.
TUESDAY, 6:07pm: The Colts and free agent defensive lineman Kendall Langford have agreed to a contract, per the team’s official website. Terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed.
Langford, a seven-year veteran, spent the past three seasons with the Rams and totaled over 100 tackles and eight sacks. Impressively, the 29-year-old Langford has never missed a game since breaking into the NFL in 2008 with the Dolphins, appearing in 112 straight contests and making 90 starts.
Langford is coming off a respectable season – Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked him the 36th-best D-tackle in the league out of 81 qualifiers – and is expected to add durable depth to a Colts defense that finished 2014 a below-average 18th against the run.
Eagles Notes: Cornerbacks, Maclin, Graham
The Eagles’ biggest problem last season was their vulnerability against opposing quarterbacks. Philadelphia’s defense allowed the second-most aerial yardage in the NFL in 2014, finished tied for 21st in interceptions, and ended up 20th in Football Outsiders’ pass defense rankings. The Eagles are expected to have just under $50MM in cap space to spend this offseason, and they’re likely to use at least a decent portion of that to upgrade a secondary that needs two new starting cornerbacks.
The Seahawks’ Byron Maxwell, whom many consider the best corner set to hit the free agent market Tuesday, has been linked to the Eagles recently. The 27-year-old further stoked the flames earlier this week when he said, according to Phil Sheridan of ESPN.com, that he would “definitely” consider signing with the Eagles. With that in mind, Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer took a look at Maxwell’s body of work and wondered whether the Eagles would spend the $10MM to $12MM per annum that the four-year veteran is seeking. McLane brought up multiple concerns surrounding Maxwell, including the fact that he has just 17 career starts and was supported in Seattle by three elite defensive backs – Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor. However, McLane also made mention of the positives Maxwell brings, notably his coverage skills, size (6-foot-1, 207 pounds), range and versatility.
Regardless of whether the Eagles ultimately sign Maxwell, they’re going to be busy during free agency as they work to improve their secondary and other aspects of their roster. Here’s more on what the coming days could bring for Philly:
- Zach Berman, also of the Philadelphia Inquirer, examined Maxwell and other possible free agent corner options for the Eagles. Berman highlighted Antonio Cromartie, Davon House, Kareem Jackson, Chris Culliver and Brandon Flowers as potential targets.
- Geoff Mosher and Reuben Frank continued the defensive back theme in wondering whether the Eagles should pursue Jimmy Wilson, who has spent his first four seasons in the league with the Dolphins. Neither Mosher nor Frank endorsed adding Wilson as anything more than a backup.
- Two of the Eagles’ top players – star receiver Jeremy Maclin and linebacker Brandon Graham – are both scheduled to hit the market Tuesday, and can start negotiating with other teams Saturday. Unsurprisingly, the Eagles are expected to face “stiff competition” to sign Maclin, per Berman, if he makes it to free agency. Similarly, Graham will be in high demand and, according to Berman, could net a deal north of $40MM in total value and $20MM in guarantees.