Shareece Wright Visits Bills
Free agent cornerback Shareece Wright visited the Bills on Wednesday, according to an announcement from the team.
The 30-year-old Wright has been on the open market since the Ravens released him March 7, and he hadn’t garnered any known interest until his meeting with Buffalo. Wright, also an ex-Charger, started between six and 14 games in each of the previous four seasons – including nine in 2016 – so he’d lend some experience to a Bills team that’s largely bereft at corner after No. 1 man Ronald Darby. The six-year veteran has gone three straight seasons without an interception, though, and ranked a below-average 75th in overall performance among Pro Football Focus’ 111 qualified corners in 2016.
If the Bills sign Wright, he’ll go down as the third offseason addition to their cornerback corps, joining free agent pickups Marcus Cromartie and Leonard Johnson. Those two are clear downgrades from the corners the Bills have lost this offseason, however, with Stephon Gilmore having signed with the Patriots and Nickell Robey-Coleman having somewhat surprisingly gotten his release.
AFC East Notes: Bills, QBs, Fins, Alie-Cox
The Bills have shown significant interest in prospective first-round quarterbacks of late, but it could be a ploy to trade down from the 10th overall pick, suggests Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News. By publicly meeting with signal-callers, including North Carolina’s Mitch Trubisky, Texas Tech’s Patrick Mahomes and Notre Dame’s DeShone Kizer, the Bills might be trying to coax a QB-needy team into moving up to No. 10. Head coach Sean McDermott acknowledged that possibility Wednesday, telling WKSE-FM in Buffalo (via Mike Rodak of ESPN): “We’ll take a look at those [quarterbacks], but it doesn’t mean we’re taking a quarterback. Maybe these last three or four trips were just kind of all a smokescreen, right? It’s kind of like hiding your presents from your kids. You kind of put them in different spots and see, right? We’ll just see.” However, the Bills didn’t want the news of their meetings with QBs to leak, according to Greg Gabriel of 670theScore. Further, the fact that owner Terry Pegula has been on hand for workouts with QBs implies the Bills, despite having Tyrod Taylor, view the position as a major need, posits Gabriel (Twitter links).
More on Buffalo and one of its division rivals:
- Alabama cornerback Marlon Humphrey visited the Bills on Wednesday, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Having lost Stephon Gilmore and Nickell Robey-Coleman this offseason, Buffalo is in dire need of corners. PFR’s Dallas Robinson currently has Humphrey going 13th overall, right in the vicinity of the Bills’ selection.
- The Dolphins were among 30 teams in attendance for former Virginia Commonwealth University basketball player Mo Alie-Cox‘s workout Tuesday, but just one of three to meet with him afterward, per the Richmond Times Dispatch (via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald). As a free agent, Alie-Cox could sign anywhere immediately, and he’s hoping to follow in the footsteps of ex-college basketball players who became successful NFL tight ends.
- If Tennesee defensive end Derek Barnett is on the board for the Dolphins’ first-round pick, No. 22, they’ll seriously consider selecting him, writes Jackson. Barnett may end up going in the top 10, though, which would take Miami out of the running if it stays put.
Colts Unlikely To Sign Johnathan Hankins
Free agent Johnathan Hankins‘ visit to the Colts on Tuesday didn’t lead to a deal, as the defensive tackle left town without agreeing to a contract, reports Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star. It doesn’t appear the two sides will eventually find common ground, either, according to Holder.
Although Hankins has been on the market for over a month, he continues to hold out for more than teams are interested in paying. That includes the Colts, who are unwilling to meet Hankins’ demands despite having over $30MM in cap space. Hankins hasn’t exactly encountered a robust market for his services this offseason; the only reported offer to come his way has been from the Giants, with whom he spent the first four seasons of his career. That proposal has been on the table for the 25-year-old since before free agency began, and the Giants continue holding out hope he’ll accept it.
As for the Colts, they’re likely to focus a good deal of attention on the D-line in the draft if nothing materializes with Hankins, per Holder. After finishing 2016 last in the NFL in DVOA against the run, the Colts’ only notable acquisition along the line this offseason has been Jabaal Sheard. They could look to further bolster the unit with the 15th overall pick, then.
Extra Points: Saints, Pats, Cards, Broncos
There’s a slightly better chance cornerback Malcolm Butler will be a member of the Saints than the Patriots in 2017, says Albert Breer of The MMQB (video link). If New England does trade Butler, it could happen during the week leading up to the draft, notes Breer. Butler, a restricted free agent, is facing an April 21 deadline to sign an offer sheet with someone. Once that passes, he won’t be allowed to negotiate a contract with anyone other than the Patriots. While the Saints have discussed a contract with Butler, they aren’t going to tender him an offer sheet because they’d risk losing the 11th pick in the draft. But the Saints also own the 32nd choice, which they acquired from the Pats in the Brandin Cooks trade, and could send that back to them in a Butler deal.
More from New England and a couple other NFL destinations:
- With Butler potentially on the way out, the Patriots hosted Florida corner Teez Tabor on Monday, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Tabor is among the draft’s 50 best prospects in the estimation of NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah, though both an underwhelming 40-yard dash and subpar interviews at the combine could cause him to slide.
- Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer visited the Cardinals on Monday, according to Rapoport (via Twitter). Kizer may be a possibility at No. 13 overall for Arizona, which needs to find an heir apparent to the 37-year-old Carson Palmer.
- Trevor Siemian will reportedly enter the Broncos’ forthcoming quarterback competition with an edge over Paxton Lynch, but head coach Vance Joseph insists he’ll give each a “50-50” shot. “It’s going to go down to the wire, I hope,” he added (Twitter link via Mike Klis of 9News).
- Monday roundup: Marshawn Lynch is interested in joining New England; LSU running back Leonard Fournette might go higher in the draft than expected; and Buffalo and Philadelphia added veteran signal-callers.
Junior Galette Arrested
Redskins pass rusher Junior Galette was arrested Friday in Biloxi, Miss., on charges of disorderly conduct and failure to comply with police orders, reports WLOX. Galette’s attorney confirmed the arrest to Nick Underhill and Ramon Antonio Vargas of The Advocate, adding that his client had quickly bailed out, but he didn’t offer further details.
This isn’t the first time Galette, 29, has run afoul of the law during his NFL career. Galette was arrested and booked on one count of misdemeanor simple battery related to domestic violence back in January 2015, when he was a member of the Saints. Video of a man who appeared to be Galette striking a woman in 2013 then surfaced in June 2015, and though no charges were filed, the Saints released him a month later and absorbed serious cap penalties in the process.
After the Saints cut ties with Galette, he quickly caught on with Washington. However, he hasn’t played a down for the team yet on account of tearing his left Achilles tendon two summers ago and his right Achilles last year. The league also hit Galette with a two-game ban in 2015 stemming from his domestic incident from that year. The two-time double-digit sack artist will attempt to return to action next season, but it’s possible his latest arrest will lead to another suspension, further delaying his comeback.
Draft Notes: Browns, Bills, King, Fins
There’s reportedly a chance LSU running back Leonard Fournette will go No. 1 overall to the Browns in this month’s draft, but Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com doesn’t expect that to happen. The odds of coming off the board with the top pick continue to favor Texas A&M edge defender Myles Garrett, though Cleveland could give some consideration to North Carolina quarterback Mitch Trubisky, notes Cabot. The Browns do have another first-rounder, No. 12 overall, and they’d have interest in taking Fournette there, Cabot writes. However, it doesn’t seem as if Fournette will still be available then.
Garrett, meanwhile, informed Sam Alipour of ESPN The Magazine that he wants the Browns to draft him, vowing to get revenge if they don’t. On why he should be the first choice this year, Garrett offered: “Because I’ll be a difference maker from day one. And I’m not gonna be in any trouble. I’m just gonna make plays and bring a good atmosphere to your organization. And I’m gonna start winning and winning now. And because if you don’t draft me No. 1, I will punish your team for the next 10 to 12 years. I’ll knock your QB out of the game every time we play you, and I’ll have to kick the hell out of No. 1, whoever it is.”
More of the latest draft-related news:
- Buffalo continues to show interest in potential first-round quarterbacks. The Doug Whaley-led Bills, who are reportedly “in love” with Clemson’s Deshaun Watson, met with Trubisky on Sunday. Before doing that, the Bills worked out Notre Dame’s DeShone Kizer on Saturday, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter link). Team brass, including owner Terry Pegula, also had dinner with Kizer.
- University of Washington cornerback Kevin King will visit the Eagles, Raiders, Browns and Ravens this week, reports FOX Sports’ Charles Davis (on Twitter). King, a prospective first-rounder, received an invitation to the draft, adds Davis.
- University of Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya met with Dolphins head coach Adam Gase last week, relays Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Dolphins are unlikely to end up with the projected mid-rounder, though, as they probably won’t consider selecting a signal-caller until late in the draft, per Jackson.
NFC Notes: Sherman, Saints, 49ers, Falcons
No NFLer has come up in more trade rumors this month than Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, but it’s likely he’ll stay put, writes Tom Pelissero of USA Today. It would take something along the lines of a first- and third-round pick to acquire Sherman, and that price probably isn’t going to come down, Pelissero hears. Plus, even though Sherman requested a trade, the relationship between him and the Seahawks is hardly in shambles. Sherman is content to continue his career in Seattle, and the team would have no problem retaining the four-time Pro Bowler, per Pelissero.
More from the NFC:
- Next season stands as the final year of Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro‘s rookie contract, meaning it could could be his last hurrah in New Orleans. However, he’d rather ink an extension with the Saints than test free agency next spring. “I want to play for the Saints. I love the team,” Vaccaro told Nick Underhill of The Advocate. “I love coach (Sean) Payton. Coach Payton is going to be here. We got a good young team. I think we’re a couple of pieces away from getting to back to where we were my rookie year. I don’t want to leave that. The grass isn’t always greener.” Vaccaro isn’t “pressing” for a deal, but he does expect the Saints to enter negotiations with him “after all the offseason stuff” is out of the way. The 27-year-old has been a strong contributor to the Saints’ defense since going 15th overall in the 2013 draft, though he is coming off a suspension-shortened season.
- With Vaccaro’s future in New Orleans uncertain, the Saints had UConn safety Obi Melifonwu in for an official visit Monday, which Charlie Campbell of WalterFootball first reported (Twitter link). Melifonwu is the 45th-best prospect in this year’s draft class, opines Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com. The four-year starter “has a rare blend of size and speed for the position,” notes Jeremiah.
- Cornerback Tramaine Brock was arrested on suspicion of felony domestic violence Thursday, and the 49ers released him Friday. Rookie head coach Kyle Shanahan addressed that decision Monday, saying (via Cam Inman of the Mercury News): “We spent the day trying to figure out all the information as much as you can. You never do get all of it, but there was enough there that we felt it was a decision we had to make and move on from (Brock).” The 49ers cut the eight-year veteran with a “failed physical” designation, according to Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area (Twitter link).
- Falcons corner Desmond Trufant will earn nearly half of the money in his five-year, $68.75MM extension by next March, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Trufant is due $33MM over the next 11 months, and he’ll average $14.75MM per annum during the first three years of the deal.
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/10/17
The latest minor moves from around the NFL:
- Broncos linebacker Todd Davis has signed his restricted free agent tender, reports Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post (Twitter link). The Broncos applied a second-rounder tender to Davis, meaning it would have been quite costly for anyone to sign him away from Denver. The 24-year-old Davis set career highs in starts (15) and tackles (97) last season, when his performance ranked a decent 43rd among Pro Football Focus’ 87 qualified linebackers.
- Patriots offensive lineman Cameron Fleming has signed his RFA tender, per Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Pats applied an original-round tender last month to Fleming, who was a fourth-round pick in 2014. Fleming has started in 14 of 35 appearances in three seasons, and is coming off his first 16-game campaign.
- The Rams are keeping defensive end Ethan Westbrooks, who signed his original-round RFA tender, relays Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com. Westbrooks, undrafted in 2014, was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence last month, but the Sacramento County District Attorney chose not to file charges. Los Angeles is also retaining exclusive rights free agents Matt Longacre (DE) and Louis Trinca-Pasat (DT). Meanwhile, the team has officially waived wide receiver Stedman Bailey, whose career likely ended when he survived two gunshot wounds to the head in 2015.
- Nose tackle Mike Purcell and linebacker Carl Bradford have signed their ERFA tenders with the 49ers, tweets Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area. Purcell, the more experienced of the two, logged career-best totals in appearances (15), starts (five) and tackles (26) in 2016.
- The Raiders have waived defensive lineman Demetrius Cherry, according to James Palmer of NFL.com (Twitter link). Cherry signed with the 49ers last spring as an undrafted free agent from Arizona State. After the 49ers cut him prior to the season, he caught on with Oakland’s practice squad.
- The Falcons have signed former University of Georgia track and field athlete Garrett Scantling, who will try and make the team as a receiver (Instagram link). Scantling has not played football since his senior year of high school. However, he performed well when partaking in Jacksonville University’s pro day last month.
- LSU’s Cyril Grayson, who also has a background in track, has signed with the Seahawks, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The seven-time All-American hasn’t played football since 2011, but he did run a 4.33-second 40-yard dash at LSU’s pro day last week, writes Christopher Dabe of NOLA.com.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Leonard Fournette Candidate To Go No. 1?
LSU running back Leonard Fournette ventured to Charlotte on Monday to visit the Panthers, according to Albert Breer of The MMQB (Twitter link). Few teams, if any, have drawn more connections to Fournette than the Panthers in recent weeks, though it doesn’t seem as if they’ll be able to land the 228-pounder with their current first-round pick, No. 8 overall.
[RELATED: PFR’s First Mock Draft Of 2017]
Carolina is reportedly interested in trading up to the 49ers’ top selection, No. 2, to select either Fournette or Stanford defensive lineman Solomon Thomas. However, Fournette might not even be on the board then, according to CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora, who writes that the Browns aren’t ruling out taking him with the first pick in the draft. That’s unlikely, concedes La Canfora, who expects the Browns to grab Texas A&M edge defender Myles Garrett. But even if the Browns pass on Fournette, he’s nevertheless enough of a blue-chip talent to go higher than expected, notes La Canfora.
It should help Fournette’s cause that the rest of the offensive talent in this year’s class is underwhelming, La Canfora suggests, with no surefire quarterback prospects, a receiver group which leaves “plenty to be desired” and a subpar collection of tackles. There are other first-round-caliber running backs in Florida State’s Dalvin Cook and Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey, but scouts are down on the former because of character issues, relays La Canfora. As such, McCaffrey could end up as the second back taken, perhaps near the top 10, which jibes with an earlier report from FOX Sports’ Peter Schrager.
If Fournette does wind up a top five pick, as La Canfora expects, it seems the Jaguars, who pick fourth, would be the most logical fit. Jacksonville’s top two runners, T.J. Yeldon and Chris Ivory, each averaged under 4.0 yards per carry last season, and head coach Doug Marrone seemingly wants to upgrade the team’s backfield. The other clubs with selections in the first five, the Browns, 49ers, Bears and Titans, have more-than-capable No. 1 rushers in Isaiah Crowell, Carlos Hyde, Jordan Howard and DeMarco Murray, respectively.
Patriots Finalize Alan Branch Deal
The Patriots agreed to re-sign defensive tackle Alan Branch to a two-year contract worth up to $12MM just over a month ago. That deal finally became official Monday, tweets Field Yates of ESPN.com.
[RELATED: Marshawn Lynch To New England?]
The 2017 season will be the fourth in New England for the 32-year-old Branch, who was previously with the Cardinals, Seahawks and Bills. Branch is coming off back-to-back 16-appearance, 15-start campaigns, and the 10-year veteran tallied a career-high 49 tackles and chipped in 1.5 sacks in 2016 for the Super Bowl champions. He also ranked 25th in overall performance among Pro Football Focus’ 127 qualified interior defensive linemen.
Branch, who totaled the second-most snaps among Patriots D-linemen last season (625), is primed to serve as the starting unit’s elder statesman in 2017. The other expected No. 1s, Kony Ealy, Malcom Brown, Trey Flowers, are each 25 or younger. The Pats also have 20-something reserves in Vincent Valentine, Lawrence Guy and Geneo Grissom.