Jets Reach Out To Zach Orr
Count the Jets among the many teams with interest in free agent linebacker Zach Orr, reports Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. Orr’s agent, Robert Sheets, confirmed to Schwartz that the Jets have reached out to his client, adding that they’ll attempt to set up a visit.
Orr, who retired in January thanks to a congenital spine condition, announced Wednesday that he’s considering a comeback after receiving more encouraging medical opinions than he got over the winter. Previously with the Ravens, who are mulling whether to attempt to re-sign him, Orr has a significant portion of the league interested in his services and already has multiple visits lined up – including one with the Lions.
Given that the 25-year-old Orr’s in his prime and coming off a season in which he earned second-team All-Pro honors, it’s no surprise that his unexpected foray into free agency has piqued teams’ interest. Of course, whether he signs with any will come down to if clubs believe he’ll be physically able to continue his career. Should Orr sign with the Jets, he’d replace departed middle linebacker David Harris, who’s now a Patriot after Gang Green released him earlier this month.
Extra Points: Orr, China, Redskins
Free agent linebacker Zach Orr is planning a comeback after retiring in January on account of a congenital spine condition. There’s concern over whether he’ll be able to play with that condition, but Dr. David Chao of the San Diego Union-Tribune expects at least one team’s medical staff to clear Orr. Roughly half the NFL is interested in Orr, so odds do seem to be in his favor. If the 25-year-old does sign with someone, it’s likely that club will require him to sign a waiver releasing it of liability, notes Chao.
More from around the sport:
- The NFL has abandoned its plan to play a regular-season game in China in 2018, reports Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal. Interestingly, the league is now considering kicking off 2019, its 100th season, in China. “It may make better sense to look at that game as an opportunity to celebrate our hundred years, in the event we can pull it off and as a way to look forward to the future,” NFL executive vice president/international Mark Waller told Kaplan.
- Houston Bates and Lynden Trail have a chance of making the Redskins‘ roster thanks to Trent Murphy‘s four-game suspension, Rich Tandler of CSN Mid-Atlantic writes. Last year, Bates served as the team’s No. 4 outside linebacker before a torn ACL ended his season in Week 14. Trail, meanwhile, has great size at 6’7″, 270 pounds, but he’s still raw after two practice squad seasons. Still, the suspension cracks the door open for both players to make the 53-man cut.
- Free agent running back Antonio Andrews pleaded guilty to an assault charge Thursday, according to Stacey Barchenger of the Tennesseean. Andrews, accused in March of punching a man who used a racial slur, was sentenced to six months’ probation and will have the charge expunged from his record if he completes it. On the other hand, if Andrews violates his probation, he’ll serve jail time. Regardless, Andrews could face some form of discipline from the league. It might not matter, however, considering no teams have publicly shown interest in the three-year veteran since the Titans non-tendered him in March. That came after Andrews totaled just two carries in 16 games last season.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Extra Points: Kaepernick, Patriots, Draft
There’s a belief that free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick‘s a behind-the-scenes distraction because of his political activism, but his previous head coach, Chip Kelly, said otherwise Wednesday. “Kap was awesome,” the former 49ers head coach told ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Jon Schlosser of All22). “You know, at the beginning of the year, he made a stance in terms of what he believed was right. We recognized and supported his ability to do that. But he never brought that into the locker room.” Kelly also denied that Kaepernick isn’t dedicated to football, saying, “He came to work every day, extremely diligent in terms of his preparation, in terms of his work ethic.”
More from around the game:
- In a detailed piece focusing on the use of analytics in the NFL, Albert Breer of The MMQB writes that teams around the league are sure the Patriots are “knee-deep in the numbers.” The reigning Super Bowl champions are “completely consistent with what sophisticated analytics would tell you to do,” said one executive, with Breer noting that the Patriots’ “analytics guy” is former Wall Street trader Ernie Adams, who’s friends with head coach Bill Belichick. Added an AFC executive: “[Belichick] does it with intuition. You know because you’ve been coaching for so long, how you match these 11 guys against those 11 guys. It all makes sense to you. At some point, maybe we can all come to those conclusions without having Bill Belichick’s brain. We’re still a long way from that.”
- While it’s unlikely to happen, the league should explore holding the draft prior to free agency, opines Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Both the NBA and NHL do it that way, notes Florio, though he concedes that the NFL wouldn’t be able to move the draft up by much because of the combine, pro days, team visits and private workouts. As such, free agency wouldn’t open until April or May.
- As training camp approaches, the staff at ESPN.com lists one notable veteran per team who could end up off their clubs’ rosters by Week 1, whether by release or trade. Jets defensive lineman Sheldon Richardson, Bengals cornerback Adam Jones, Bills center Eric Wood, Jaguars linebacker Paul Posluszny and 49ers tight end Vance McDonald are among the names.
AFC Notes: Orr, Raiders, Chiefs, Bell
A few AFC-themed notes:
- Free agent linebacker Zach Orr, who retired in January thanks to a congenital spinal condition, announced Wednesday that he’s planning a comeback. Now, nearly half of the NFL’s 32 teams have interest in Orr, though the Raiders aren’t among those clubs at the moment, reports Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal (Twitter link). The 25-year-old’s agent, Rob Sheets, told Childs Walker of the Baltimore Sun on Wednesday that Orr is “100 percent confident he will play this season. This is a one-in-a-billion situation. I couldn’t even make this up.” But Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun is less than enthusiastic about Orr’s potential return, opining that the defender should stay retired instead of coming back and risking paralysis. Regardless of whether Orr plays in 2017, Schmuck doesn’t anticipate him rejoining the Ravens, as there’s doubt that their doctors would deem him healthy enough to play.
- Chiefs ownership fired general manager John Dorsey in part over concerns about how he presented himself, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. Dorsey is “more comfortable in a sweatshirt than a suit and tie,” writes La Canfora, leading to questions over whether he was corporate enough for chairman Clark Hunt’s liking. Despite that, there were no indications Dorsey was in over his head in the role – the team did go 43-21 with him at the helm, after all – and one agent told La Canfora: “He’s wily. He’s guile. He plays like he doesn’t know, but he knows. He’s creative in his approach to negotiations and he can be strong willed when he has to be. He’s a very smart negotiator. He’s going to get another job, I’m sure, and he’ll show why he is one of the best GMs in the league. He already has to be one of the top evaluators in the game.” Like that agent, La Canfora doesn’t expect Dorsey to go without a job for long, but he also doesn’t see him rushing into a lesser role than the one he just had.
- There’s no deal in sight for Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell, who will either ink a long-term contract by the July 17 deadline for franchise players or go through the season under the tag. With the calendar moving toward that date, each of Jamison Hensley, Pat McManamon and Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com agree that the Steelers should extend Bell, arguing that the 25-year-old – unlike most running backs – is worth a significant investment.
NFC Notes: Eagles, Mariota, Vikings
The latest on a pair of NFC franchises:
- Philadelphia was reportedly aggressive in trying to trade up to No. 2 in the 2015 draft to land quarterback Marcus Mariota, who played under then-Eagles head coach Chip Kelly at Oregon in 2012. But Kelly shot that down in a discussion with ESPN’s Adam Schefter, revealing that talks didn’t go anywhere because Tennessee wasn’t interested in moving the pick (via Matt Lombardo of NJ.com). “That’s all speculation that’s out there, you hear stories that ‘we offered this, we offered that,” said Kelly. “We didn’t offer anything because they weren’t taking any offers for it.” Unable to move up 18 spots to land Mariota, the Eagles ultimately stayed at No. 20 and selecting wide receiver Nelson Agholor, who has disappointed in the NFL. Kelly didn’t even finish out the 2015 season with the Eagles, who fired him prior to Week 17 and then went on to select a different potential franchise signal-caller, Carson Wentz, after moving up to No. 2 overall (by way of a trade with the Browns) in 2016.
- Just over a month after signing running back Latavius Murray in free agency, presumably to start, the Vikings selected ex-Florida State rusher Dalvin Cook in the second round of the draft. Murray addressed that Wednesday, telling NFL Network (per Kevin Patra of NFL.com): “I was home, watching the draft — I try to keep up regardless, just with the game itself. So they draft him. It wasn’t a surprise. When you see a guy, again, first-round potential sitting there in the second round, they snatch him up, you can’t be surprised. It motivates me regardless, because they’re always going to bring in somebody to take over for your position.” Even with Cook in the fold, Murray expects to rack up the lion’s share of the Vikings’ rushing attempts in 2017, and the ex-Raider plans to mentor the younger back. “As I said, MJD [Maurice Jones-Drew], Darren McFadden, Marcel Reece, those guys did everything they could to try and help me be a better player, and I’m going to do the same for Dalvin,” Murray noted. “Again, it’s going to come down to who is going to be the best player that can play. Because I give Dalvin knowledge and try to help him, doesn’t mean, OK, that I shouldn’t go out there and outperform him and outcompete.”
- The Vikings believe they may have a steal on their hands in another newcomer, defensive tackle Will Sutton, suggests Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune. Sutton, whom the NFC North rival Bears cut in May and who signed with the Vikings a week later, wasn’t playing in an ideal scheme in Chicago, according to Minnesota’s brass. “We felt like when [the Bears] went to a 3-4, it was probably not a real good fit for him,” said Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer. “His game is based on quickness and acceleration and penetration, so we’ve kind of had our eye on him for a while.” Pro Football Focus disagrees with Zimmer, for what it’s worth, as the outlet gave Sutton easily the best grade of his three-year career last season. He posted poor marks over the two prior seasons, though, including a rookie campaign (2014) spent in a 4-3.
Extra Points: Manning, Fins, Carr, Cousins
In the wake of quarterback Ryan Tannehill‘s season-ending knee injury last December, Dolphins head coach Adam Gase reached out to the retired Peyton Manning about a possible comeback. “It started with Gase,” Peyton’s father, Archie Manning, told Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com. “He said, ‘Hey 18, Tannehill went down.’ He said, ‘I think he’s going to miss some time. The first question I’m going to get at the press conference in the morning is if I’m going to try to bring you to Miami. What do you want me to tell them?” Peyton Manning was resoundingly successful under Gase when he was Denver’s quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator from 2012-14, but neither a reunion with Gase nor joining a playoff-bound club late in the season could entice the future Hall of Famer to return. Continued Archie Manning: “The text message came back from Peyton, ‘You tell them I could probably come play, but there’s no way I can miss carpool the next two weeks.’ So, he was done.” With Peyton Manning unwilling to come out of retirement, the Dolphins turned to backup QB Matt Moore toward the end of the regular season and in the first round of the playoffs, in which Pittsburgh soundly defeated them.
A few more notes from around the NFL…
- At $25MM per year, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr‘s newly signed contract is a record deal in terms of average annual value, but it still doesn’t match up to Colts signal-caller Andrew Luck‘s pact, writes Bill Barnwell of ESPN.com. While Luck is collecting less per season (just over $23MM) on the six-year, $139.1MM extension he inked last summer, he outpaces Carr in terms of both three-year value ($75MM to $67.6MM) and four-year value ($96.125MM to $87.7MM). Those are better gauges than the overall value of a contract, suggests Barnwell, who argues that the last year of a quarterback’s deal is essentially irrelevant. By then, the QB will have either landed a raise, thereby eliminating what was left on the previous contract, or gotten cut.
- Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins isn’t going to sign a long-term deal worth less than $52MM over the first two years, contends JP Finlay of CSNMidAtlantic.com. That figure represents the combined totals of the $24MM franchise tag for 2017, which Cousins is slated to play under, and the $28MM transition tag for next year. Even that might not be enough for the Redskins to lock up Cousins by the July 17 deadline, observes Finlay, who’s not particularly optimistic that a deal will come together.
- Fourth-year Steelers defensive tackle Daniel McCullers is facing a make-or-break summer, notes Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The 352-pound McCullers is coming off his first 16-game season, but he only played 17.4 percent of defensive snaps, and the Steelers opted against giving him first-team reps in minicamp while starter Javon Hargrave dealt with an injury. When speaking with the team’s official website about McCullers’ status, Steelers defensive line coach John Mitchell didn’t mince words, saying: “Dan McCullers, he’s got to grow up. It’s time to make a move right now. This is going to be his fourth year. And usually in this league, after about four years, you have got to make a move. Or, either, you move somewhere else.”
NFC Notes: Giants, Redskins, Saints, ‘Boys
The Giants’ decision to hand defensive end Devin Taylor a minimum salary benefit deal last month has mostly generated positive reviews around the NFL, with one source calling it a “great signing,” reports Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com. One NFC source took a less enthusiastic tone, however, calling Taylor “just a guy.” But, considering what they’re paying him, the Giants aren’t expecting Taylor to do much more than provide passable depth behind stars Jason Pierre-Paul and Olivier Vernon. Taylor, who started in all 16 of the Lions’ games last season and piled up a respectable 4.5 sacks (down from seven in 2015), will rotate at defensive end with the Giants and could see time as an interior rusher on passing downs, according to Raanan.
More from the NFC:
- Late-March free agent signing Brian Quick won’t be long for the Redskins’ roster if he doesn’t impress in training camp, writes Rich Tandler of CSNMidAtlantic.com. Quick didn’t perform well during offseason practices, and the team has a few locks at wide receiver, leaving the 28-year-old on the bubble as camp nears, per Tandler. The 2012 second-round pick spent his first five years as a member of the Rams, with whom he exceeded the 20-catch plateau only twice. To his credit, though, Quick posted a career year in 2016, hauling in personal highs in catches (41), targets (77), yards (564) and touchdowns (three).
- Saints left tackle Terron Armstead underwent successful surgery for a torn labrum on Monday, reports Herbie Teope of NOLA.com. While that’s a relief for Armstead and the Saints, it’s not going to change his expected recovery timeline. He’s still set to miss between four to six months, which will leave the club without arguably its best offensive lineman until sometime in the fall.
- Cowboys receiver Brice Butler will head into camp with his roster spot in jeopardy, relays David Moore of the Dallas Morning News. Butler could face a challenge from rookie seventh-round pick Noah Brown, notes Moore, and the Cowboys also have shoo-ins to make the roster in fellow wideouts Dez Bryant, Terrance Williams, Cole Beasley and fourth-rounder Ryan Switzer. Butler was a seventh-rounder himself not long ago, in 2013, and put up his first 16-game campaign last year. All told, he caught 16 passes for 219 yards and a career-high three scores.
Giants Not Prioritizing Odell Beckham Deal
Amid questions over whether the Giants’ Odell Beckham Jr. would stage a holdout this summer, co-owner John Mara said earlier this month that he wants the wide receiver to spend his entire career with Big Blue. Beckham went on to downplay concerns over his current situation – he could play the next two seasons for a relative pittance – and Mara addressed the three-time Pro Bowler’s status again Thursday (via Neil Best of Newsday).
On whether the Giants will hand Beckham an extension this summer, Mara told Mike Francesa of WFAN: “There’s always a chance, but it’s not our No. 1 priority right now. But we do want to get it done. We have some time to get it done. But I can’t give you a timetable on that.”
Mara also explained why he wants Beckham to be a lifelong Giant, saying: “Well, he’s one of the best players in the league, and he makes us a different team when he’s on the field. He puts a lump in the throat of the opposing defense. He’s only 24 years old. And I think he can help us win a championship.”
Having amassed eye-popping numbers (235 receptions and 35 touchdowns) so far in his career, the three-year veteran could be on his way to eventually signing a record-setting contract for a receiver. But the Giants don’t have much financial incentive to lock up Beckham now, as the 2014 first-round pick from LSU is due a paltry $1.8MM this season and will be controllable in 2018 via his fifth-year option for a reasonable $8.5MM. Beckham’s situation becomes cloudier thereafter, but it seems likely the Giants will franchise tag him for an affordable $18MM-plus in 2019 if he remains a star and the two sides don’t have a long-term deal in place by then. The relationship between them is seemingly on solid ground, though, with Mara revealing that he sat down with Beckham for “a very pleasant meeting” in May.
“He’s a smart young man and he wants to be the best,” Mara said of Beckham. “He wants to win a Super Bowl. I wish we had a dozen more like him.”
AFC Rumors: Steelers, Broncos, Titans
Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey‘s career could end when quarterback Ben Roethlisberger‘s does, relays Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Pouncey’s still young (he’ll turn 28 in July), but it’s possible the seventh-year man and five-time Pro Bowler would rather hang it up than continue with someone other than Roethlisberger, who mulled retirement after last season and is entering his age-35 campaign. “It will be hard for me to come back if he’s not here,” Pouncey said of Roethlisberger. “Whenever you’re playing with that level of quarterback, to try to switch that up would be a different mojo for everybody on the team. … I’m glad he came back. We need him to win a championship around here.”
More on Pittsburgh and two other AFC clubs:
- Three Broncos who have gone high in recent drafts, wide receiver Cody Latimer, offensive tackle Ty Sambrailo and tight end Jeff Heuerman, will have to fight for their roster spots in training camp, observes Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post. Latimer, a second-rounder in 2014, hasn’t made much of an impact as a receiver (16 career catches), and he’s not in position to change that with Demaryius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, Carlos Henderson and Isaiah McKenzie ahead of him on the depth chart. As such, his best hope is to make the Broncos as a special teamer, posits Wolfe, who expects that to happen. Sambrailo, meanwhile, went in the second round a year later and has only totaled 13 appearances and seven starts. Even if he cracks the Broncos’ roster, Sambrailo seems likely to serve as primarily a backup again, as the team spent a first-rounder on tackle Garett Bolles this year after adding fellow bookend Menelik Watson on a three-year, $18.3MM deal in free agency. And then there’s Heuerman, a 2015 third-rounder who missed his entire rookie year with a torn ACL and then caught nine passes in 12 games last season. He’ll have to fend off Henry Krieger-Coble to make the team, notes Wolfe. Denver’s other tight end options include Virgil Green, A.J. Derby and fifth-rounder Jake Butt, a former Michigan standout who’s working back from the torn ACL he suffered in his final college game last December.
- As a rookie last season, fifth-rounder Tajae Sharpe finished second among Titans wide receivers in catches (41), targets (83) and yards (522) in 2016. Nevertheless, it seems he’ll enter camp with a weak hold on a roster spot, writes Jason Wolf of the Tennesseean. The Titans used two valuable picks on receivers – Corey Davis in the first round and Taywan Taylor in the third – in the spring and then signed established veteran Eric Decker last week. Those additions combined with Sharpe’s questionable health (he recently underwent surgery for a stress fracture in his right foot) and a police investigation over an alleged assault have the 22-year-old in limbo, according to Wolf.
- The fact that the Steelers have a deep receiving corps means third-year man Sammie Coates will have to battle for a spot in camp, suggests Fowler. Coates was a relatively high selection in 2015, when he went in Round 3 of the draft, but the ex-Auburn star has totaled just 22 receptions in 21 games as a Steeler. A broken finger and a groin injury likely contributed to Coates’ underwhelming output last season (21 catches on 49 targets, two touchdowns), and he indicated that he’s nearing full health with camp approaching. “I’m getting there. It’s a process,” said Coates, who underwent sports hernia surgery over the winter. “That’s what this process is for, to get your body back so you can compete during camp.”
Extra Points: Giants, Jackson, Kap, DHB
Giants defensive tackle Jay Bromley has totaled just three starts in 39 games since going in the third round of the 2014 draft, but he’s pushing for a No. 1 role this year, writes Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. When asked who will start next to elite nose tackle Damon Harrison, Bromley told Schwartz: “If I’m being honest, man, I see me. I see me.’’ The position opened when the Giants lost Johnathan Hankins to the Colts in free agency, though Big Blue subsequently invested a second-round pick in ex-Alabama D-tackle Dalvin Tomlinson and signed former Bills lineman Corbin Bryant. The fact that those two are in the mix will make it difficult for Bromley to achieve his goal of starting, but as a contract-year player, a breakthrough season would be a boon to his bank account. Regarding his lack of long-term security, the 25-year-old offered: “It’s there and obviously something you have in the back of your mind. I have a family now, so I have to keep that in mind. I know I have the talent, I know I have what it takes, it’s about being consistent each and every day, proving to the coaches I’m their guy.’’
Here’s more from around the league:
- In an effort to get back into the NFL, free agent running back Fred Jackson will participate in a Spring League showcase game next month. Unsurprisingly, then, the 36-year-old believes he’s still capable of contributing, telling SiriusXM NFL Radio: “All I need is an opportunity. I have no doubt if I got into a training camp I would prove I can still help a team win.” Jackson also acknowledged that general managers “get scared away” by his age, but he noted that he’s in “great shape” (Twitter links). A prominent part of Buffalo’s offense from 2007-14, Jackson played sparingly with Seattle in 2015 and was unable to find a job last season.
- Quarterback Colin Kaepernick has hurt his cause by staying silent throughout the free agency process, opines Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The polarizing 29-year-old hasn’t publicly revealed his financial demands, whether he’d jump at any NFL offer or whether he’d continue his career in Canada if necessary, which Florio regards as a mistake. Florio also criticizes Kaepernick’s agent for not calling all 32 NFL teams earlier this offseason in an attempt to drum up interest in his client.
- Although wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey hasn’t lived up to his draft stock since going seventh overall to the Raiders in 2009, he has emerged as a favorite of the Steelers’ coaches and players, according to Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh-Tribune Review. Now in his fourth year in Pittsburgh, Heyward-Bey has barely been a factor in the club’s receiving corps (30 catches in 42 regular-season games), yet he has been valuable both on special teams and as a mentor to the Steelers’ younger players, as Adamski details. However, despite his under-the-radar contributions, Heyward-Bey’s roster spot isn’t exactly guaranteed this year, per Adamski. “I’m just trying to keep my seat,” said the 30-year-old. “It’s comfortable, too.”