Steelers, Antonio Brown Begin Extension Talks
The Steelers and superstar wide receiver Antonio Brown have opened contract extension talks, reports Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Brown is set to enter the final year of his deal in 2017, though he and the Steelers are optimistic about reaching a new agreement well before training camp, a source told Fowler.
The 28-year-old Brown is fresh off his fourth straight 100-catch campaign and could push to become the NFL’s highest-paid receiver as a result. A.J. Green of the division-rival Bengals currently paces the league’s wideouts in annual salary ($15MM), while Super Bowl-bound Falcons standout Julio Jones leads the pack in guaranteed money ($35.5MM). Without an extension, Brown will play 2017 on a $4.71MM salary and count $13.618MM against the Steelers’ salary cap.
An extension is clearly the goal, though, as Brown told ESPN’s First Take on Friday that he’d like to spend the rest of his career in Pittsburgh (Twitter link via Fowler). That came after Steelers president Art Rooney II said Tuesday that Brown is “certainly a player that we would like to have on the team for a while.” Rooney also brushed off Brown’s behind-the-scenes issues – including his decision last month to broadcast head coach Mike Tomlin‘s fiery speech after the Steelers’ divisional-round win over the Chiefs on Facebook – as “little annoyances.”
It’s easy to see why the Steelers are willing to put up with “little annoyances” from Brown: Since they selected him in the sixth round of the 2010 draft, the 5-foot-10, 181-pounder has hauled in 632 receptions and 50 touchdowns in just 101 games. Brown has also exceeded the 1,100-yard plateau five times – including a ridiculous 1,834-yard showing in 2015.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Chiefs Plan To Extend John Dorsey, Andy Reid
While Chiefs general manager John Dorsey and head coach Andy Reid are on track to enter contract years in 2017, chairman Clark Hunt would like to change that. Hunt is “very satisfied” with how the franchise has fared under Dorsey and Reid and will look to ink the pair to extensions this offseason, he told Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star on Friday.
“Both [John] and Andy … I would expect to sit down with them over the course of the next year and sit down and talk about an extension,” said Hunt.
It’s no surprise that the Chiefs are interested in a new deal for Reid, as ESPN’s Adam Schefter first reported last month that the club plans to extend the 58-year-old. Reid, who coached the Eagles from 1999-2012, joined the Chiefs in advance of the 2013 season and has since helped the franchise to a 43-21 regular-season record and three playoff appearances. Kansas City has gone just 1-3 in the playoffs under Reid, though, and was one-and-done last month after winning the highly competitive AFC West with a 12-4 mark.
The postseason troubles the Chiefs have endured with Reid at the helm haven’t hurt his standing in Hunt’s eyes, however. Reid, who’s among the NFL’s highest-paid coaches at $7.5MM per year, has “done a great job,” per Hunt.
As for the front office, the Chiefs just watched well-regarded player personnel director Chris Ballard depart to become the Colts’ GM, so it’s possible their urgency to extend Dorsey and keep him from leaving has increased. Dorsey was previously with Green Bay from 2000-12 and has come up as a possibility to eventually return there to succeed his former boss, 64-year-old GM Ted Thompson. Since exiting Wisconsin in 2013 to grab the reins of a a KC team that won just two games in 2012, Dorsey has added crucial pieces like Alex Smith, Tyreek Hill, Jeremy Maclin, Travis Kelce, Eric Fisher, Spencer Ware, Dee Ford, Marcus Peters, Jaye Howard and Chris Jones, among others, to the team’s roster. In doing so, he has helped turn the Chiefs into perennial playoff contenders.
RELATED:
NFC Notes: Cousins, 49ers, Saints, Cardinals
If Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins becomes available either via the trade or free agency this offseason, the 49ers reportedly plan to pursue the 28-year-old. That would seemingly be a welcome development for Cousins, who praised the 49ers’ new leadership – rookie general manager John Lynch and soon-to-be head coach Kyle Shanahan – on Thursday. Cousins told KNBR 680 (via CSN Bay Area) that Lynch is “smart guy” and a “class act,” adding, ” I think it was a good hire and credit the 49ers for going outside the box and doing something different, and not just getting stuck in a rut of the same old thing.” Shanahan is an “offensive genius,” according to Cousins, who played under the longtime coordinator in Washington from 2012-13. “I’ve always been a big fan of Kyle’s,” Cousins said. “I’ve always spoken very highly of him from the day I was picked. And he called me right after the draft and preached belief in me and encouragement … I loved his system right away and saw it successfuly run with Robert Griffin. I’ve seen it now run successfully with Matt Ryan.”
More from the NFC:
- Colts COO Pete Ward stated last month that an “associate” of Saints head coach Sean Payton reached out to Indianapolis about its head coaching job, but Payton denied that Friday. Payton told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that his only “associate” is agent Don Yee, who didn’t call the Colts, and the coach added that he had never even previously heard of Ward. While there were reports earlier this winter that teams – including the Colts and Rams – could explore trading for Payton, the Saints never made him available, he informed Florio.
- Payton’s boss, Saints owner Tom Benson, brought an end to a long battle Friday in settling an ownership dispute with his heirs centering on both New Orleans’ NFL franchise and the NBA’s Pelicans, details Greg LaRose of NOLA.com. If not for the settlement, the parties would have headed to trial Monday (the trial would not have impacted Benson’s control over the teams). Prior to Friday, Benson had been looking to remove ownership shares in the Saints and Pelicans from trust funds created for his daughter and grandson. The family had a falling out on account of Benson’s third wife, Gayle, whom he married in 2004 and who, in the heirs’ opinions, has too much control over Benson’s business affairs.
- The Cardinals are planning to have left tackle Jared Veldheer and right tackle D.J. Humphries trade places in 2017, offensive coordinator/line coach Harold Goodwin revealed Thursday (via Darren Urban of the team’s website). “Jared is a team player, D.J. is a team player, so I’m sure we’re going to have a little coach-to-player conversation, but right now, throwing it out there of my own accord, I think D.J. at left and Jared at right and we’re rolling and kicking butt,” Goodwin said. Veldheer went on injured reserve in October with a partially torn triceps. That opened the door for Humphries to move back to the left side, where he spent his college career at Florida. Humphries was impressive enough there with the Gators to end up as a first-round pick in 2015, though he was inactive for his entire rookie season before beginning last year on the right side. In a combined 13 starts at the two positions, he graded as Pro Football Focus’ 42nd-best tackle among 78 qualifiers. Veldheer, meanwhile, was far better at the time of his injury (No. 18 out of 74), but that won’t stop the Cardinals from moving him off his typical position. The 2017 campaign will be the penultimate season of the five-year, $35MM deal Veldheer signed with the Cardinals in 2014.
Justin Forsett Mulling Retirement
After nine NFL seasons, Broncos running back Justin Forsett is mulling retirement, according to Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post.
“After the Super Bowl, my wife and I are going to take a vacation. My wife is going to have a baby so we’ll take a little time off after that,” said Forsett, who has played for six teams. “In a month or so, we’ll come up with a decision.”
If Forsett does come back for what would be his age-32 season in 2017, it might be in another uniform. Forsett is scheduled to become a free agent after spending just four games in Denver, which claimed him off waivers from the Lions in early December. Forsett wasn’t any kind of solution in his 2016 stint with the Broncos, though, as he averaged a mere 3.6 yards per carry on 43 attempts. That came after Forsett posted just over 3.0 yards per rush on a combined 44 tries with the Lions and Ravens, the latter of whom released him in October.
Forsett, who entered the league as the Seahawks’ seventh-round pick in 2009, had success as a reserve both there and in Houston before breaking out in Baltimore. In 2014, his best individual season, Forsett ran for 1,266 yards on 235 carries (good for an impressive 5.4 YPC), scored eight touchdowns and caught 44 passes as a member of the Ravens.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Extra Points: Steelers, Hawks, Giants, Chiefs
The oldest defensive player in the NFL, linebacker James Harrison, is reportedly planning to return for his age-39 season in 2017, and the Steelers are interested in bringing back the pending free agent. “Obviously, we need to have a contract. But I think we’re definitely open to it,” team president Art Rooney II told Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Tuesday. “And, from what I understand, at least he’s open to it.” Despite his advanced age, Harrison led the Steelers in sacks (five) in his 14th NFL season and became the franchise’s all-time leader in that category (79.5).
Regardless of whether Harrison’s career continues with the Steelers, they’ll prioritize upgrading their pass rush this offseason, Rooney indicated. “That’s a piece of the puzzle that I think we can identify we want to improve on,” said Rooney, whose club finished ninth in sacks and 15th in quarterback hurries in 2016.
Elsewhere around the league…
- The Seahawks made a contract offer to pending free agent tight end Luke Willson, but it wasn’t “extremely serious” and he “didn’t really respond to it,” the 27-year-old told KJR-AM 950 (via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times). Willson also revealed that, although his preference is to re-sign with the Seahawks, he’s “excited” about the chance to test the open market. While Willson hasn’t put up gaudy numbers in his four-year Seattle career (74 catches, 976 yards and seven touchdowns in 56 games), he could have a case for a significant payday. As Condotta notes, Willson has similar numbers to San Francisco’s Vance McDonald (64 receptions, 866 yards, seven TDs in 48 games), who landed an extension featuring $16MM in guarantees in December. The Seahawks already have one expensive tight end in Jimmy Graham, who’s due a $7.9MM salary next season.
- A subpar season – not to mention the $2.5MM in cap savings that would accompany his release – could cost running back Rashad Jennings his place on the Giants’ roster, but he expects to return in 2017. “I’ve got one more year on my contract, and I’ve got a lot to prove. I look forward to doing it in New York again,” the soon-to-be 32-year-old told James Kratch of NJ Advance Media. Jennings, who averaged a paltry 3.3 yards per rush on 181 carries in 2016, added that he and head coach Ben McAdoo had a “very upbeat” exit meeting.
- Chiefs long snapper James Winchester‘s contract extension is a five-year, $4.45MM pact featuring $500K in guarantees and a $500K roster bonus for 2017, reports Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star. Winchester can also earn $10K in workout bonuses for every year of the deal.
- Free agent linebacker Justin Tuggle worked out for the Raiders, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. The son of longtime NFL linebacker Jessie Tuggle spent 2013-15 in Houston, where he appeared in 42 games and started 11, but didn’t play this season after he was unable to survive the Browns’ final cuts in early September.
NFC Notes: Palmer, 49ers, Saints, Bears
The Cardinals don’t know if quarterback Carson Palmer will return in 2017 for what would be his age-37 season, but one new rumbling on the three-time Pro Bowler could be cause for pessimism. Palmer has put his Arizona home up for sale, pulled his kids out of school and relocated to another state, Mike Jurecki of FOX Sports 910 hears (Twitter link via one of Jurecki’s colleagues, Jody Oehler). But Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic has radically different information, tweeting that Palmer has not put his house up for sale. For now, Palmer is under contract through 2018 and set to rake in a $15MM base salary next season.
More from the NFC:
- The 49ers are suing one of their former stars, Raiders pass rusher Aldon Smith, for $341,630.18 in signing bonus money, per Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. That figure represents the amount of money Smith hasn’t repaid the team since the NFL hit him with a nine-game suspension in 2014, when he was docked $1,186,027 for serving the ban. Despite an arbitrator’s order to repay the 49ers within 30 days, Smith hasn’t done so, thus leading to the lawsuit. The 27-year-old is currently serving another suspension and didn’t play at all this season as a result.
- The Saints have added Curtis Johnson (wide receivers) and Brad Banta (special teams) to their coaching staff, relays Mike Triplett of ESPN.com. The hiring of Johnson is no surprise, as there was informed speculation Monday that he’d return to New Orleans after rejecting a contract offer to stay in Chicago. Johnson coached the Saints’ receivers from 2006-11, and newly hired Jets offensive coordinator John Morton‘s exit opened to the door for Johnson to rejoin the club. Banta, who was with the Redskins, will take over a Saints special teams unit that ranked 27th in the league in DVOA this season.
- Bears director of player development Jerry Butler has retired, writes Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. The former wide receiver took the job in 2015, and he focused on helping the Bears’ young players adjust to the NFL during his two-year stint. Butler was a popular figure among the Bears’ youngsters – including standout rookie Leonard Floyd – per Biggs.
- In what will be yet another Bears departure, assistant special teams coach Richard Hightower is set to leave Chicago to become the 49ers’ ST coach under soon-to-be head coach Kyle Shanahan, tweets Sporting News’ Alex Marvez. Shanahan and Hightower were college teammates at the University of Texas, and they have since worked together on coaching staffs in Houston, Washington and Cleveland. Hightower’s tenure in San Francisco will be his second – he was its assistant ST coach in 2015.
Minor NFL Transactions: 1/31/17
Tuesday’s minor moves:
Reserve/Futures Contracts
Baltimore Ravens
- DB Otha Foster
- LB Boseko Lokombo
Dallas Cowboys
- WR Quincy McDuffie
- WR Uzoma Nwachukwu
ERFA Re-Signing
Pittsburgh Steelers
- RB Fitzgerald Toussaint (Twitter link via Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com)
Browns Will Try To Acquire Jimmy Garoppolo
The Browns are on track to enter this year’s draft with the first and 12th picks, two places where they could select their next starting quarterback, but their signal-caller of the future might already be in the NFL. The club has real interest in Patriots backup Jimmy Garoppolo and will attempt to swing a trade for the 25-year-old this offseason, reports Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com.
AFC champion New England, which is set under center with the 39-year-old Tom Brady, is reportedly open to moving Garoppolo in the coming months. The Patriots could request at least a first- and fourth-round pick for Garoppolo, whose rookie contract will expire after next season.
For the Browns, acquiring Garoppolo would likely mean parting with the 12th selection, where they were supposedly set to zero in on national championship-winning Clemson QB Deshaun Watson. However, Watson’s decision to skip last week’s Senior Bowl may have hurt his standing with the Browns, who specifically asked him to play.
In addition to surrendering at least one high-round draft choice for Garoppolo, the team that acquires the three-year veteran would have to award him a hefty contract extension, writes Joel Corry of CBS Sports. The likelihood is that Garoppolo would want a deal similar to the four-year, $72MM pact (including $37MM) in guarantees the Texans gave ex-Broncos backup Brock Osweiler in free agency last winter.
While signing Osweiler has blown up in the Texans’ faces, Garoppolo’s limited sample of playing time has been far more impressive than Osweiler’s was with Denver. Garoppolo began the season as New England’s starter because of Brady’s four-game Deflategate ban, and he completed 42 of 59 passes for 496 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in wins over the Cardinals and Dolphins. The second game was Garoppolo’s last start of the year – and perhaps his Pats tenure – as he suffered a sprained AC joint on a hit from Dolphins linebacker Kiko Alonso and sat out for the remainder of Brady’s suspension.
Even though Garoppolo would likely fetch a quality return via trade this offseason, the Patriots could be inclined to keep him, observes Corry. As great as Brady is, he’ll turn 41 in 2018 – the same year in which Garoppolo is slated to become a free agent – meaning the Patriots could elect to retain the understudy to guard against the elder’s potential decline. That would mean either placing the franchise tag on Garoppolo or handing him a short-term contract worth “top backup money” (as much as $12MM per year, including incentives). It could help the Pats’ cause that their rapport with Garoppolo’s representatives at Yee & Dubin Sports is “excellent,” per Corry.
Chip Kelly Legit OC Candidate For Falcons
Just over a week after the Falcons expressed interest in having Chip Kelly become their next offensive coordinator, the former Eagles and 49ers head coach has emerged as a “legitimate candidate” to land the role, reports Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Kelly would take over for Kyle Shanahan, who will replace Kelly as the 49ers’ head coach after the Falcons take on the Patriots in Super Bowl LI this Sunday.
The fact that there aren’t any other proven offensive coordinator candidates on the market makes Kelly a viable option for Atlanta, Schultz notes. Long an offensive guru, the 53-year-old Kelly would inherit an enviable collection of talent in Atlanta, whose attack has laid waste to opposing defenses this season. The Matt Ryan-, Julio Jones– and Devonta Freeman-led unit topped the NFL in both scoring and DVOA during the regular season, and it has combined for 78 points in playoff wins over the Seahawks and Packers.
Kelly is known for running a fast-paced offense, which helped lead to his downfall in both Philadelphia and San Francisco, but the ex-Oregon head coach’s NFL failures have “humbled” him, according to Schultz. As a result, Kelly is willing to slow things down, which he’d have to do in order to accommodate the Falcons’ offensive weapons and make life easier on the team’s defense.
Shanahan, meanwhile, won’t be able to take any significant members of head coach Dan Quinn‘s staff with him to San Francisco. The Falcons will prevent him from pilfering the likes of assistant head coach/wide receivers coach Raheem Morris, running backs coach Bobby Turner and offensive line coach Chris Morgan, a source told Schultz. However, offensive assistants Mike McDaniel, Mike LaFleur and Matt LaFleur could end up with Shanahan’s 49ers.
Latest On Raiders’ Future: Vegas, Oakland, SD
After casino magnate Sheldon Adelson scrapped his plan to commit $650MM toward a $1.9 billion stadium in Las Vegas for the Raiders on Monday, there was a report that Goldman Sachs might also bail because of its relationship with Adelson. It turns out that will be the case. The investment firm will not help the Raiders finance a stadium without the 83-year-old Adelson’s involvement, a source told Nathan Fenno of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
Goldman Sachs was supposed to be the Raiders’ fallback option in the event of Adelson’s withdrawal. Not having either could be a death blow to the franchise’s hopes of relocating to Las Vegas. With neither around to aid the Raiders, staying in Oakland for the long haul could become a more realistic scenario than it was was previously.
Raiders owner Mark Davis hasn’t been amenable to the joint stadium proposal that the city of Oakland and the Ronnie Lott-fronted Fortress Group have put forth, but the deal isn’t without merit, as CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora writes. The city would set aside 130 acres of land for a stadium and handle all the taxes associated with it, per La Canfora, who adds that the NFL would chip in $300MM. Another $300MM to $400MM would come from Fortress (plus whatever else is necessary to complete construction) toward a stadium to replace the outdated Oakland Coliseum. Fortress would also perhaps want an ownership stake in the Raiders – something Davis is not open to giving out – but there could be other ways for him to “make them whole,” according to La Canfora.
Lott’s group issued a hopeful statement Tuesday in the wake of the Adelson news, saying (via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk): “We stand ready to work with the team and NFL to keep the Raiders here at home. We have the land available at the existing Coliseum site following the actions of the City of Oakland and Alameda County last December. We have a strong financing partner in Fortress Investment Group. We have an additional $100 million due to the NFL incentive to keep the Raiders in Oakland. And of course, we have the best fans in the world right here in the heart of Raider Nation. Add to all that a diverse and fast growing community, a top 10 television market, and more Fortune 500 companies than any region in the western United States. Bottom line, if the Raiders want to stay in Oakland, we are more than ready to be a partner in making that happen.”
If Davis can’t make things work in either Vegas or Oakland, the suddenly Chargers-less city of San Diego could quickly regain entry into the league. Mayor Kevin Faulconer reached out to the NFL on Tuesday to let the league know it’s interested in the Oakland franchise, while another San Diego official at least made an attempt to contact the Raiders, but it’s unknown if the two sides spoke, reports Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
San Diego’s plan to erect a stadium for a Major League Soccer franchise could help its cause in landing the Raiders, relays Acee, who notes that the proposal “sets aside a 16-acre parcel specifically for an NFL stadium” to replace Qualcomm Stadium. Further, Davis “loves” the city and might be more flexible in negotiations to build a facility there than Chargers owner Dean Spanos was. It’s also worth noting that the league didn’t want to lose the San Diego market, as the Chargers’ relocation left commissioner Roger Goodell “disappointed” and owners “very upset.” Those same parties haven’t been overly enthusiastic regarding the prospect of the Raiders playing in Las Vegas, the gambling capital of the United States.