Latest On Joe Haden
Before the Browns released cornerback Joe Haden on Wednesday, they were attempting to trade him for a fourth-round pick that could have become a third-rounder based on playing time, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports (Twitter links). The Browns were also willing to eat $4MM of Haden’s salary, but they were still unable to find a taker for the two-time Pro Bowler.
Now that Haden’s on the open market won’t cost a team draft-pick compensation to acquire, interest is pouring in for the 28-year-old. Twelve to 13 clubs are in on Haden, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com writes, and La Canfora adds that he’s likely to land somewhere within the next 24 hours. Along with the previously reported Steelers, Dolphins, Saints and Chiefs, the Eagles and 49ers are chasing Haden, who’s currently weighing offers for one year and multiple seasons, according to La Canfora.
Haden would be the third notable addition at corner in recent weeks for the Eagles, who picked up Ronald Darby in a trade with the Bills and Dexter McDougle in a deal with the Jets earlier this month. The team is still relatively thin at the position even with those two in the fold, though, especially after releasing Ron Brooks on Wednesday.
The 49ers are the only club in on Haden without a realistic playoff shot this season, and it seems unlikely Haden would sign with a non-contender after spending the first seven years of his career with bottom-feeding Cleveland. Indeed, Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets that it would be shocking if Haden chose the Niners. Unsurprisingly, Haden would be far and away the most accomplished corner on a San Francisco team that has another ex-Brown, K’Waun Williams, as well as Dontae Johnson, Rashard Robinson and Keith Reaser among its top four options. Those CBs have combined for just 22 NFL starts, while Haden has 81 to his name.
Details On Matthew Stafford’s Extension
Reacting to the extension the Lions gave Matthew Stafford, Bob Quinn said Tuesday that the quarterback’s presence was one of the reasons he agreed to become the team’s general manager in 2016 (Twitter link via Justin Rogers of the Detroit News). Quinn could now have Stafford under wraps through 2022 on a pact worth up to $151.5MM, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
The contract represents a firm three- to four-year commitment, per Florio, who adds that the final two seasons of the accord carry non-guaranteed, team-held options worth $19.5MM and $22.5MM, respectively. Even if the Lions bail on Stafford after 2020, he’ll still have raked in $108.5MM via this agreement. The deal features $92MM in total guarantees and a $50MM signing bonus, Adam Schefter of ESPN tweets. Both of those figures are NFL highs, as are Stafford’s $60.5MM guaranteed at signing and three-year cash flow ($51MM-$67.5MM-$87MM), Tom Pelissero of NFL.com notes (on Twitter).
Here’s the yearly breakdown, courtesy of Florio:
- 2017: Fully guaranteed base salary of $1MM.
- 2018: Guaranteed-at-signing base salary of $9.5MM; guaranteed-for-injury roster bonus ($6.5MM) due on the fifth day of the league year; $500K workout bonus. The roster bonus becomes fully guaranteed on Day 3 of the league year.
- 2019: Base salary ($13.5MM) is guaranteed for injury at signing and becomes fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2018 – not ’19 – league year. The $5.5MM roster bonus is guaranteed for injury at signing and, like the base salary, becomes fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2018 league year. There’s also a $500K workout bonus.
- 2020: $15MM base salary; $6MM roster bonus that’s guaranteed for injury at signing, becomes fully guaranteed in the 2019 league year and is due on the fifth day of the 2020 league year; $500K workout bonus.
- 2021: $9.5MM base salary, $500K workout bonus.
- 2022: $12.5MM base salary, $10MM roster bonus due on the fifth day of the league year, $500K workout bonus.
NFC Notes: Donald, Brees, Elliott
It’s “probably a safe assumption” the Rams will play their Sept. 10 season opener without defensive tackle Aaron Donald if he doesn’t end his holdout this week, general manager Les Snead told Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com and other reporters Tuesday (Twitter links here). The executive added that the Rams have tried to “come up with creative scenarios” regarding Donald’s contract in their negotiations with the back-to-back first-team All-Pro. Snead otherwise didn’t have much to offer regarding Donald, admitting that he doesn’t know if the 26-year-old will report without having received a new deal. As of now, it appears the Rams will at least go without Donald when they take on the Colts in Week 1.
The latest on a couple other NFC franchises:
- Saints quarterback Drew Brees said Tuesday that he texted “Wow” to agent Tom Condon after Lions signal-caller Matthew Stafford signed a five-year, $135MM extension Monday (via Mike Triplett of ESPN.com). Stafford’s deal will pay him $27MM per year – a figure the highly accomplished Brees could rival when he signs a new pact in the next eight months or so. Of course, the 38-year-old Brees’ age will prevent him from approaching Stafford’s pact in length or total value. Brees, who’s on the one-year, $24.25MM extension he signed last summer, has indicated that he won’t worry about his next contract until after the season.
- Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott‘s appeal hearing with the NFL regarding his six-game suspension will last through Thursday, Adam Schefter reports (Twitter links). Final briefs are due Friday, notes the Washington Post’s Mark Maske, who adds that a ruling probably won’t come until next week.
- Saints cornerback Delvin Breaux is likely to begin the season on injured reserve and come off IR later in the year, Herbie Teope of NOLA.com writes. Breaux, who fractured his fibula in mid-August, won’t be eligible to return until Week 9 if he does head to IR. Teams are allowed to designate two players to return from IR during the season. Meanwhile, it’s possible left tackle Terron Armstead will avoid spending the first six weeks of the season on the reserve/physically unable to perform list because he “might be ready earlier” than that time frame, head coach Sean Payton said Tuesday. Armstead went down with a torn labrum in mid-June and is currently on the active/PUP list.
AFC Notes: Ward, Landry, Flacco, Bengals
Although Broncos head coach Vance Joseph told reporters Tuesday that he “would be surprised” if they traded safety T.J. Ward, his time on their roster is running out, Mike Klis of 9News suggests. Whether the Broncos trade or release Ward, their safety depth makes him expendable, Klis argues. Moving on from Ward would mean jettisoning someone whose reckless style has led to injury issues, as Klis points out that he missed seven games over the previous three years and hasn’t played any preseason games this summer on account of a hamstring strain. While Klis notes that Ward remains a quality player, he nonetheless expects the Broncos to make the difficult decision of parting with a defender who has made two Pro Bowls and started in all 41 of his games during his three-year tenure with the club. Despite Ward’s accomplished resume, both his age (30) and salary ($4.5MM) torpedo his trade value, Klis contends. If the Broncos end up having to cut Ward, they’d avoid paying him any of the $4.5MM he’s owed.
More from the AFC:
- Dolphins coach Adam Gase assured Jarvis Landry this week that he’s not on the trade block – a gesture the wide receiver appreciated. “Coach Gase did an amazing job,” Landry told Steven Wine of the Associated Press. “He called me in and he just talked to me, explained to me the situation and everything that’s going on, and that that’s false (speculation). That’s all I really needed to hear from him.” Regardless of whether the Dolphins have shopped Landry, the contract-year player’s time in Miami could be winding down. Landry informed Wine that he still has no interest in negotiating an extension once the season starts, giving the Dolphins under two weeks to re-sign the prolific pass catcher. They’ve been in no hurry to re-up Landry, though, so it continues to look as if an answer on his future won’t come until next offseason.
- Ravens head coach John Harbaugh updated the statuses of two of his key offensive players – quarterback Joe Flacco and wide receiver Breshad Perriman – on Tuesday, per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. Flacco, who has been out for over a month with a back injury, is throwing again and “moving toward practice,” according to Harbaugh. Flacco still needs medical clearance to return to the field, but Harbaugh expects him under center for the Ravens’ season opener against Cincinnati on Sept. 10. And the coach is “very optimistic” Perriman will suit up for Week 1. The oft-injured 2015 first-round pick has been unavailable since Aug. 1 because of a hamstring issue.
- Bengals tight end Mason Schreck suffered an MCL injury Sunday that will lead to a lengthy absence and impact the team’s roster decisions, Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports (on Twitter). As a seventh-round pick stuck behind Tyler Eifert, Tyler Kroft and C.J. Uzomah on Cincy’s depth chart, Schreck was already facing an uphill battle to make the club before the injury.
NFC East Notes: Cousins, Foles, Cowboys
The record-setting contract extension the Lions awarded quarterback Matthew Stafford on Monday will raise Redskins signal-caller Kirk Cousins‘ asking price and make it even more difficult for the team to re-sign him at season’s end, Mike Jones of the Washington Post points out. With Cousins scheduled to hit free agency next winter, the Redskins could place the franchise tag on him for a third straight year if there’s no deal in place prior to free agency, but that would mean guaranteeing him upward of $34MM. Jones expects the Redskins to apply the transition tag for a lesser cost – $28MM – and ultimately lose Cousins to a team willing to give him a massive long-term deal. The Redskins wouldn’t be entitled to any compensation in that scenario.
More from the NFC East:
- Eagles quarterback Nick Foles hasn’t taken the field this preseason because of an elbow injury. Specifically, Foles has a flexor strain and inflammation around a nerve in his right elbow, a source told Les Bowen of Philly.com. While the source indicated that Foles had the same problem during his time with the Chiefs last year, it won’t affect his place on the Eagles’ roster or his regular-season availability, Bowen notes. The plan remains for him to back up Carson Wentz beginning in Week 1.
- Cowboys tight end Rico Gathers has been dealing with a concussion for two weeks and could head to injured reserve as a result, Drew Davison of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes. An IR placement for Gathers would keep him out of game action for at least the first eight weeks of the season and deprive Dallas of a burgeoning weapon. The former Baylor basketball player and 2016 sixth-round pick was a shoo-in to make the Cowboys’ 53-man roster prior to his injury, Davison relays. Gathers’ absence would leave the Cowboys with the experienced James Hanna as their No. 2 tight end behind Jason Witten, though he’s coming off a season lost to injuries and isn’t a receiving threat.
- Owner Jerry Jones says that Jaylon Smith will have an “accelerated approach” towards the upcoming season (Twitter link via Clarence Hill of the Star-Telegram). That’s a departure in philosophy from before, when Jones said the team would be deliberate in its approach with the Notre Dame product.
- Tight end Will Tye, defensive ends Kerry Wynn and Romeo Okwara, wide receiver Dwayne Harris, kicker Aldrick Rosas and offensive lineman D.J. Fluker aren’t sure bets to make the Giants’ roster and could be on the block, James Kratch of NJ.com observes. Although, given that trades in the NFL are rare and nobody from that group holds much appeal, Kratch doesn’t expect Big Blue to make any deals in the coming days.
Dallas Robinson contributed to this post.
Latest On Ezekiel Elliott
Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott‘s appeal of his six-game suspension will last into a second day, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). Elliott, who’s fighting a ban stemming from domestic violence allegations, faced off with the NFL on Tuesday, but there’s “no end in sight,” per Rapoport.
While Elliott may miss the first six games of the season, there’s actually a strong chance he’ll be on the field for the Cowboys’ opener against the NFC East rival Giants, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says (Twitter link via Rob Guerrera of NBC Sports Radio). Elliott suiting up for Week 1 will occur if he files a lawsuit against the league, which Florio expects to happen.
One issue Elliott’s camp continues to have is an inability to access to the notes from Tiffany Thompson’s interviews with the league, Josina Anderson of ESPN tweets. Thompson, Elliott’s ex-girlfriend who accused him of domestic violence on June 22, 2016, has credibility issues, according to the running back. However, hearing officer Harold Henderson barred Elliott’s side from including her interviews with the league in the appeal hearing. Regardless, Elliott’s team has to explain how she suffered bruising during the week of June 22, 2016. Their contention is that “virtually all of the alleged victim’s injuries were outside the timeline,” Anderson reports (on Twitter).
The notion of Elliott’s suspension being delayed until next season if he doesn’t achieve the desired result during the appeal process has come up in recent days, and it doesn’t seem that Tuesday’s events have closed the door on that possibility.
Pats Suspect ACL Tear For Julian Edelman
The Patriots suspect that wide receiver Julian Edelman suffered a torn right ACL in the first quarter of their game against the Lions on Friday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports (Twitter link). He’ll undergo an MRI on Saturday.
Edelman departed after succumbing to a non-contact injury on an 18-yard catch and then went to the locker room on a cart. He hauled in three passes for 52 yards in limited action, once again displaying his importance to New England’s Tom Brady-led offense.
Edelman, who has emerged as one of the NFL’s premier wideouts in recent years, finished fourth in the league in both targets per game (9.8) and receptions (98) during the Patriots’ Super Bowl-winning 2016 campaign. He was also one of many postseason heroes for the squad, as he hauled in 21 playoff catches to give him 89 for his nine-year career. Only Jerry Rice (151) and Reggie Wayne (93) have amassed more playoff grabs than the 31-year-old Edelman, who looks like a shoo-in to at least surpass the latter at some point. Unfortunately for the Patriots and Edelman, though, it doesn’t appear he’ll accomplish that feat this season.
The recipient of a two-year, $11MM contract extension in June, Edelman has combined for a whopping 356 receptions in 55 games since his breakout showing in 2013. That type of production will obviously be difficult to replace this season, but the Patriots are still equipped with plenty of quality targets. Newcomer Brandin Cooks will take the helm of what should be an Edelman-less receiving corps, while Chris Hogan and Malcolm Mitchell also figure to make sizable impacts. What’s more, the Pats likely have the best tight end duo in the league – Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen – as well as established pass-catching running backs in James White and Dion Lewis. Brady will have no shortage of options at his disposal this year, then, but his favorite choice is unlikely to be a factor as the team goes for its sixth Lombardi Trophy.
NFC Notes: Kap, Eagles, Aguayo, Brooks
With Nick Foles battling an elbow injury that has kept him out of preseason action and Matt McGloin having such a subpar summer that he’s likely to lose his roster spot, the Eagles may have a backup quarterback problem. They could potentially solve it by signing free agent Colin Kaepernick, Mike Sielski of Philly.com contends. Kaepernick remains unemployed in part because owners don’t want to deal with the backlash that would accompany signing the political activist, but that shouldn’t be a problem for the Eagles. After all, owner Jeffrey Lurie signed Mike Vick as a backup QB in 2009, after he served an 18-month prison sentence for his role in a dogfighting ring. While it’s up for debate whether Kaepernick is in the right, Vick’s actions were undeniably revolting. And yet he was able to land a second chance in Philadelphia.
More from Philly and two other NFC cities:
- Second-year kicker Roberto Aguayo‘s struggles have transferred from Tampa Bay to Chicago, Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com writes. Aguayo, whom the Bears claimed off waivers from the Buccaneers on Aug. 13, missed a 49-yard field goal in his preseason debut with Chicago last week and, according to head coach John Fox, had a rough practice Friday. “I think our kicker had a little bit of a struggle today in some of his field goals, but it was something we knew about Roberto,” Fox said. “He’s got a very strong leg; he needs to work on his accuracy. That’s why we’re out here practicing.” Fox added that the Bears will spend the next week-plus working to help Aguayo turn around his fortunes. Otherwise, given that he’s competing with Connor Barth, Aguayo could find himself on waivers again. That would be a stunning turn of events for a kicker who was not only a second-round pick in 2016, but someone the Buccaneers also surrendered a third- and fourth-rounder for when they traded up to select the ex-Florida State standout.
- It appeared Eagles defensive lineman Beau Allen would miss the first few weeks of the regular season when he suffered a chest injury in April. That won’t be the case, though, as Allen passed a physical Friday and came off the active/PUP list, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). The three-year veteran is now in position to keep his iron man streak alive, as he has never missed a game during his career. The return of Allen will further bolster a strong D-line and give the Eagles a player who was on the field for 554 snaps last year (412 on defense, 142 on special teams).
- The 49ers released linebacker Ahmad Brooks on Friday rather than closer to the Sept. 2 deadline because they wanted to give him a better chance to hook on elsewhere before the season opens, head coach Kyle Shanahan told reporters (via Mike Florio Pro Football Talk). “Doing it right now is more just in the best interest for Ahmad,” Shanahan said. “It’s a real tough decision. [General Manager] John [Lynch] and I had gone back and forth with it the last few days. Once we really came to the conclusion he wasn’t going to be a part of our final 53, we weren’t going to keep him around just to let him know [eight] days from now. So, we know there’s a lot of teams that will be interested in him. So we gave him that opportunity to go out and find them.” Brooks should indeed draw interest in free agency, having posted no fewer than five sacks in any of his eight seasons with the 49ers. He also missed just eight games during that span.
Spencer Ware Carted Off With Knee Injury
Chiefs running back Spencer Ware left the field on a cart during the first quarter of their game against the Seahawks on Friday after suffering a right knee injury on a 6-yard reception. The Chiefs confirmed the injury, but the severity remains unknown.
The Seahawks were the first NFL employer for Ware, who entered the league as a sixth-round pick of theirs in 2013. He joined the Chiefs a year later and, after a strong 2015 campaign in reserve, became their go-to to running back last season amid now-Bronco Jamaal Charles‘ injury troubles. Ware ended up rushing for 921 yards on 214 carries and adding five touchdowns (three rushing, two receiving), to go with 33 catches and 447 yards. If healthy, he’s likely to reprise his role as their starter this year, though whether he’ll be physically up to it is now in question.
The Chiefs, who will seek their third straight playoff berth in 2017, did attempt to bolster their backfield behind Ware in the offseason. The team spent a third-round pick on former Toledo star Kareem Hunt, who came in after Ware departed Friday, and signed onetime 1,000-yard rusher C.J. Spiller. Charcandrick West is also on hand, but he averaged just 3.3 yards per carry on 88 attempts last season.
Julian Edelman Suffers Knee Injury
Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman exited the team’s game against the Lions in the first quarter on Friday after he suffered a non-contact right knee injury, the Pats confirmed. Edelman limped off the field after an 18-yard reception and then went to the locker room on a cart. His injury looks “consistent” with an ACL tear, Dr. David Chao of Sirius XM tweets.
Edelman, who’s in his ninth season with the Patriots, has long been one of quarterback Tom Brady‘s favorite targets, having amassed 425 receptions and 24 touchdowns during his time in New England. The 31-year-old totaled 98 catches, a career-best 1,106 yards and three touchdowns last season and tallied 21 more receptions for 342 yards and a score during the Patriots’ Super Bowl-winning playoff run. Edelman ranks third all-time in postseason catches (89) and has been part of two Super Bowl championship teams in New England, which awarded him a two-year, $11MM contract extension in June.
A severe injury to Edelman would ostensibly damage the Patriots’ chances of winning their sixth title of the Brady/Bill Belichick era this season, though their offense would remain in an enviable position even without him. The Pats continue to boast offseason acquisition Brandin Cooks, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell and Danny Amendola at wideout, while Rob Gronkowski and trade pickup Dwayne Allen lead their tight ends. They also possess multiple pass-catching running backs in James White – who, like Edelman, was instrumental in the Pats’ Super Bowl LI win over the Falcons – and Dion Lewis.