Rams Want To Extend DB Lamarcus Joyner
Although the contract statuses of cornerback Trumaine Johnson and defensive tackle Aaron Donald may take precedence at the moment, the Rams also want to reach a long-term extension with defensive back Lamarcus Joyner, according to Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com. Los Angeles is interested in a new deal for linebacker Alec Ogletree, as well, per Gonzalez.
Joyner, 26, will be seeing time at a new position this season, as he’ll be shifting to free safety after lining up at slot cornerback for the first three years of his NFL career. A second-round pick in 2014, Joyner has appeared in 40 games (14 starts) for the Rams, and last year managed 76 tackles, five passes defensed, and one sack. Overall, Joyner graded as the league’s No. 30 corner, per Pro Football Focus.
Scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next spring, Joyner will earn a $1.106M base salary in 2017 and carry a cap charge of $1.601MM. While the Rams could conceivably use the franchise tag on Joyner next year if no extension is hammered out, that tender would come with a cost north of $11MM. While Joyner has been a valuable player during his time with the Rams, he’s probably not worth that price tag.
Los Angeles’ interest in extending Ogletree, meanwhile, dates back to at least February of 2016. Because he was a first-round selection, Ogletree is under team control in 2018 the fifth-year option, which will pay him $8.369MM. In 16 starts a season ago, Ogletree played nearly every defensive snap for the Rams, but only ranked as the No. 57 linebacker among 88 qualifiers, according to PFF.
Anquan Boldin To Visit Unknown Team
Free agent wideout Anquan Boldin has spoken with several clubs about a contract and will visit an unidentified team on Sunday, according to Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Twitter link).
Boldin, 36, reportedly may seek to sign with a club that plays closer to his Florida residence, which could rule out a reunion with the Lions (although Detroit is open to re-signing him). Perhaps seeking to avoid the grind of training camp, Boldin is apparently willing to wait for a new deal, and could look to ink a contract later in the offseason.
Signed to a one-year, $2.75MM deal prior to last season, Boldin appeared in all 16 games for the Lions in 2016. On 95 targets, Boldin managed 67 receptions for 584 yards and eight touchdowns. While the yardage total was the lowest of Boldin’s career, his eight scores were the most he’s posted since 2008. Boldin, a three-time Pro Bowler, played on 80% of Detroit’s offensive snaps as the club’s third receiver behind Golden Tate and Marvin Jones.
Last month, PFR ranked Boldin as the best available receiver left on the open market.
Offseason In Review: Houston Texans
The Texans finished 9-7 and won the AFC South for the second consecutive year, and they did so with quarterback play that was below average to say the least. It’s fair to wonder how far Houston may have advanced with competence under center, and the club went into the 2017 offseason with signal-caller as the No. 1 item on its to-do list.
Notable signings:
- Ryan Griffin, TE: Three years, $9MM. $3.225MM guaranteed.
- Breno Giacomini, T: One year, $2.75MM. $750K guaranteed.
- Shane Lechler, P: One year, $2MM. $500K guaranteed.
- Nick Novak, L: One year, $1.15MM. $250K guaranteed.
- Sio Moore, LB: One year, minimum salary benefit.
- Marcus Roberson, CB: One year, $690K.
When two of your six offseason signings were the re-upping of your kicker/punter combo, you didn’t have very busy spring. The Texans were among the least active clubs during the free agent period, and that’s a result of both cap space constrictions and roster makeup. Houston ranked in the bottom-third of the league with roughly $25MM to work with, so it didn’t have an exorbitant amount of funds to spread around. But the Texans’ squad was also relatively stable outside of quarterback (a position they weren’t going to fill in free agency), so upgrades were difficult to find.
Aside from Nick Novak and Shane Lechler (obligatory Punters Are People Too link), the only player Houston decided to re-sign was tight end Ryan Griffin, whom it inked to a cheap three-year deal. Griffin played second fiddle to C.J. Fiedorowicz in 2016, but still raked in 50 receptions on 74 targets. He didn’t do much else well, however, as he earned poor blocking grades from Pro Football Focus and rarely played on special teams. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Griffin starts to lose playing time to second-year tight end Stephen Anderson next season.
Griffin could be lining up next to a new right tackle in 2017, as the Texans brought in former Jet/Seahawk Breno Giacomini to provide insurance given that Derek Newton won’t play until at least 2018. Now 31 years old, Giacomini has struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness over the past two seasons, but he’d been roughly an average player prior to that. Chris Clark, who started 14 games in the absence of Newton a year ago, rated among the league’s worst tackles in 2016, so Giacomini shouldn’t have any trouble overtaking him for the starting job.
While Giacomini could end up providing surprising production at a cheap rate, it’s a tad odd that Houston didn’t go after a more high-profile addition at tackle. The Texans did add Bucknell product Julien Davenport in the fourth round, and while he could conceivably compete for snaps during his rookie campaign, Houston could have attempted to sign someone like Ricky Wagner (admittedly, an expensive undertaking) or Mike Remmers in free agency. Austin Pasztor, who played well for the Browns in 2016, is still available, and would still be a welcome supplement to the Texans’ front five.
As PFR’s Connor Byrne noted in his pre-free agency Texans analysis, Houston could have addressed the safety position this offseason, as well, but aside from selecting Treston Decoud in the fifth round, the club stood pat while losing 13-game starter Quintin Demps to the Bears. Andre Hal and Corey Moore project as Houston’s 2017’s starters, but both earned middling grades from PFF last year. The Texans could have targeted free agent options such as Tony Jefferson, Duron Harmon, or D.J. Swearinger earlier this year, but players such as Corey Graham and Jairus Byrd are still on the open market.
North Notes: Johnson, Lions, Browns, Ravens
Former Lions receiver Calvin Johnson has hinted that Detroit’s long string of failure played a role in his retirement, and he reiterated that sentiment last week, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “I was stuck in my contract with Detroit, and they told me, they would not release my contract, so I would have to come back to them,” Johnson said. “I didn’t see the chance for them to win a Super Bowl at the time, and for the work I was putting in, it wasn’t worth my time to keep on beating my head against the wall … and not going anywhere.”
As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk details, the Lions and new general manager Bob Quinn may have misled Johnson into thinking he’d be forced to stick with Detroit in 2016. While Johnson says the Lions wouldn’t have released him from his contract, Detroit almost surely would have had to make some sort of adjustment to Johnson’s cap charge, which would have totaled $24MM. By convincing him to retire, the Lions saved more than $11MM on its 2016 salary cap.
Here’s more from the NFL’s two North divisions:
- Hue Jackson is expected to receive a long leash as head coach of the Browns, and likely won’t be fired even if the club struggles again in 2017, writes Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. As I wrote in today’s review of the Browns’ offseason, Cleveland is in the midst of a full-scale rebuild, and the team’s ownership and front office is aware that Jackson isn’t leading a top-notch roster. As Cabot notes, the Browns will likely be starting rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer for the majority of the season, so growing pains are to be expected. While improvement over last year’s 1-15 mark is to be expected, Jackson won’t be blamed if Cleveland doesn’t come near playoff contention.
- Before opting to sign with the Ravens this spring, safety Tony Jefferson used a creative method to determine if he’d fit with Baltimore’s roster. “I had to personally go on NFL Game Pass and watch tape and film before I made a decision,” said Jefferson, per Max Mayer of NFL.com. “I felt like this defense fits me. I feel like this style fits me. I love to hit, and do that type of stuff. And I think that’s the culture, and that’s what I want to be a part of.” Jefferson left Arizona to ink a four-year, $34MM deal with the Ravens, where he’ll team with fellow defensive back Eric Weddle.
- In case you missed it, PFR’s Zach Links examined the possibility of a deal between the Steelers and franchise-tagged running back Le’Veon Bell. If the two side don’t reach an extension by July 17, Bell will play out the season on a fully guaranteed one-year pact worth $12MM+.
Offseason In Review: Cleveland Browns
Squarely in the middle of a rebuild, the Browns posted a one-win campaign under the first-year management team of general manager Sashi Brown and head coach Hue Jackson. 2016’s struggles were accepted (and expected), but Cleveland had work to do in both free agency and the draft as it took the next step in forging a path to contention in the AFC North.
Notable signings:
- Jamie Collins, LB: Four years, $50MM. $26.4MM guaranteed.
- Kevin Zeitler, G: Five years, $60MM. $23MM guaranteed.
- Kenny Britt, WR: Four years, $32.5MM. $10.5MM guaranteed.
- J.C. Tretter, C: Three years, $16.75MM. $6.5MM guaranteed.
- Britton Colquitt, P: Four years, $11.2MM. $3.15MM guaranteed.
- Jason McCourty, CB: Two years, $6MM. $2MM guaranteed.
- Charley Hughlett, LS: Six years, $6.37MM. $850K guaranteed.
- Matt McCants, T: One year, minimum salary benefit. $80K guaranteed.
- Isaiah Crowell, RB: One year, $2.746MM. Signed second-round RFA tender.
- Marcus Burley, CB: One year, $1.797MM. Signed original round RFA tender.
Armed with $110MM in cap space, the Browns decided to reinforce the interior of an offensive line that ranked dead last in adjusted sack rate and 28th in adjusted line yards a season ago. Cleveland first poached Kevin Zeitler from the division-rival Bengals, making the 27-year-old the highest-paid guard in the NFL. His $12MM annual salary is $300K per year more than the Raiders’ Kelechi Osemele, while Zeitler’s full guarantee of $23MM trails Osemele by $2.4MM. Zeitler graded as the league’s No. 7 guard in the league in 2016, according to Pro Football Focus, so he’ll be an improvement over the likes of John Greco and Spencer Drango (and will make Greco one of the NFL’s best reserve offensive linemen).
The Browns didn’t stop after adding Zeitler, as they also brought in former Packers center J.C. Tretter. A former fourth-round pick, Tretter split time at Green Bay’s pivot with Corey Linsley over the past three years, and also showed the ability play guard and tackle. While he doesn’t offer much experience (only 10 career starts), Tretter should offer an upgrade for the Browns, who haven’t found an option at center since Alex Mack after the 2014 campaign. Former first-round selection Cameron Erving, a center by trade, will now become part of Cleveland’s competition at right tackle, the club’s one weak spot on a front five that PFF ranked as the second-best offensive line heading into the 2017 season.
Running behind the Browns’ revamped offensive line will be Isaiah Crowell, who’s back with the team after signing his second-round restricted free agent tender. Crowell, 24, reportedly drew interest as an RFA, but will instead return to Cleveland on a non-guaranteed $2.746MM. After posting the best season of his three-year career in 2016, Crowell could be in line for an extension, although talks had apparently stalled as of late May. He rushed for a career-high 4.8 yards per carry on 198 attempts last year.
Joining Crowell among Cleveland’s skill position players is wideout Kenny Britt, whom the Browns enticed with a four-year pact. Although Britt topped the 1,000-yard mark in 2016, he’s entering his age-29 campaign, so his fit with a young Browns roster is murky. The rest of Cleveland’s wide receiver corps is comprised of youthful, inexperienced players, so perhaps the Browns simply want some level of maturity at the position. The Britt signing wasn’t a personal favorite — the Browns could have spent a bit more and tried to lure Alshon Jeffery to Cleveland, or made a harder run at retaining Terrelle Pryor — but the club had to spend its cap space in some fashion, and Britt is a capable player.
On defense, the Browns unsurprisingly re-signed linebacker Jamie Collins after shipping a third-round pick to New England in order to acquire him at midseason. Collins agreed to an extension in January instead of hitting the open market, but he still set a new high-water mark for off-ball linebackers, as his $12.5MM annual salary puts him just north of Luke Kuechly. Collins graded as just the 44th-best edge defender in the league last season (per PFF), a far lower rating that he’d attained in years past, but he’s a solid fit in new defensive coordinator Gregg Williams‘ attacking 4-3 scheme.
Cleveland also brought in veteran defensive back Jason McCourty, signing the longtime cornerback after he was released by the Titans. At age-29, McCourty isn’t the No. 1 corner he once was, but he’s still a viable starter, and will add an air of competence opposite Joe Haden. McCourty will likely begin the season in the starting lineup at corner, but if the Browns are impressed by one of their young defensive backs, McCourty could conceivably be shifted to safety.
AFC West Notes: Chiefs, Broncos, Raiders
The Chiefs did in fact interview a minority candidate for their general manager position — in compliance with the Rooney Rule — but that individual does not wish to be identified, tweets Jason Cole of Bleacher Report. As such, the Fritz Pollard Alliance approved of Kansas City’s GM search. “The Chiefs left it up to the individual candidates and their agents whether they wanted their names out there or not,” chairman John Wooten told Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk. “But I can assure you that they complied. We are comfortable [with their interview process].”
Aside from Brett Veach, only three other contenders’ interviews were public knowledge: Seahawks co-director of player personnel Scott Fitterer, Titans director of player personnel Ryan Cowden, and Chiefs co-director of player personnel Mike Borgonzi. All personnel interview requests must be made to the league office, meaning the unnamed candidate may work in the media, according to to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, who speculates ESPN commentator Louis Riddick — who was linked to the Kansas City vacancy — may have been the interviewee.
Here’s more from the AFC West:
- Nearing age-30 and coming off a down season (by his standards), Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas finally feels healthy after a hip injury nagged him in 2016, and he feels he can continue playing at a high level even as he enters the twilight of his career. “I got longer than 30 [years],” Thomas told Aric DiLalla of DenverBroncos.com. “I think I’ve got a couple good years [left]. Like I’ve been saying before, this is the best I’ve felt my whole career. I haven’t had the problems I usually have with my hip, because that was one of the things that held me back.” Playing without Peyton Manning for the first time since 2011, Thomas posted 90 receptions for 1,083 yards and five touchdowns a season ago.
- While the full details and structure of Gabe Jackson‘s five-year, $56MM extension with the Raiders aren’t yet know, Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (Twitter links) has passed along a few particulars of the deal. Oakland, well-known fans of the pay-as-you-go contract structure, employed that technique with Jackson, per Corry, meaning the club did not use a signing bonus. Such a composition should allow the Raiders to easily exit the pact in future years. Jackson’s 2017 cap charge has now increased from roughly $1.945MM to ~$10.648MM, meaning Oakland utilized about $8.7MM of its available cap space.
- In case you missed it, PFR’s Sam Robinson reviewed the Broncos‘ offseason earlier this week, recapping and analyzing the major signings, departures, trades, and other notable offseason events for Denver.
AFC East Notes: Jets, McCown, Patriots, Bills
Although Josh McCown is the heavy favorite to open the 2017 season as the Jets‘ starting quarterback, Gang Green’s signal-caller competition hasn’t been resolved just yet, as Rich Cimini of ESPN.com writes. Given that head coach Todd Bowles is unquestionably on the hot seat — and needs victories to retain his job — New York could be loathe to bench McCown if the club gets off to an (admittedly unexpected) fast start. In such a scenario, second-year quarterback Christian Hackenberg might not get the type of long audition period required to show Jets management if they need to find another passer.
Here’s more from the AFC East:
- Although Jets linebacker Lorenzo Mauldin was arrested on assault charges last month (and is facing a civil suit stemming from the same incident), he’s not expected to face a suspension until at least 2018, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post. Mauldin is accused of punching a man in a New York nightclub in early April, and allegedly broke several bones in the man’s face. A third-round pick in 2015, the 24-year-old Mauldin hasn’t registered much production thus far in his NFL career, as he’s managed only 6.5 sacks as a backup in two seasons.
- Given that the Patriots are only likely to retain six wide receivers on their initial roster, veteran Andrew Hawkins doesn’t seem likely to make the squad, as Mike Reiss of ESPN.com details. Hawkins signed a one-year, minimum salary benefit deal with New England over the offseason, so the club will experience a minimal dead money hit if it cuts ties. Brandin Cooks, Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan, Danny Amendola, Malcolm Mitchell, and special-teamer Matthew Slater are Patriots roster locks, per Reiss, so there’s no room for Hawkins barring an injury.
- New Patriots linebacker David Harris will earn a base salary of $1MM in 2017, reports Miguel Benzan of PatsFans.com (hat tip: Reiss). He can also bring in $500K in per-game roster bonuses, plus another $750K via incentives. In 2018, Harris is scheduled to make a $1.75MM base salary, plus $500K in per-game roster bonuses, and $1.05MM via incentives. As previously reported, Harris also received a signing bonus of $1.25MM.
- While Preston Brown, Lorenzo Alexander, and Ramon Humber served as starters during minicamp, the Bills‘ linebacking corps battle is “wide open,” per Canio Marasco of BuffaloBills.com. Reggie Ragland, the club’s second-round pick a year ago, missed his entire rookie campaign with injury, but could be in line for playing time in 2017. Buffalo also signed veteran Gerald Hodges, who posted excellent results with the 49ers last season, to a low-cost deal.
Bills DT Adolphus Washington Arrested
Bills defensive tackle Adolphus Washington was arrested on a firearms charge outside of Cincinnati on Sunday, according to Bob Strickley of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Washington, a third round pick out of Ohio State in the 2016 draft, allegedly “reached for and displayed a gun while sitting inside his vehicle, just feet away from officers,” and didn’t report the presence of a firearm to the police before the interaction. The 22-year-old was released from custody on Sunday night.
As Strickley notes, Washington has run afoul of the law before, as he plead guilty to solicitation of prostitution while at Ohio State in 2015. While Washington wasn’t handed an NFL suspension for that incident since it happened before he turned pro, he could see a league-imposed ban for the firearm incident, regardless of whether he’s found guilty of a crime.
Washington started 11 games during his rookie campaign, but only played on roughly 30% of Buffalo’s defensive snaps. In that time, he posted 17 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and graded as the league’s No. 72 interior defender, per Pro Football Focus.
Latest On Kirk Cousins Negotiations
The Redskins’ negotiating window with franchise-tagged quarterback Kirk Cousins is down to one week, but there have been no new developments in talks between the two sides, reports Mike Jones of the Washington Post. As such, Washington and Cousins would essentially need to “start from scratch” in order to reach a deal, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.
The only positive news to come out talks between Cousins and the Redskins in recent weeks came from Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, who reported in late June that an “improved tone” had enveloped negotiations between the parties. However, a contract still doesn’t appear likely, which would mean Cousins would play out the 2017 campaign while earning a fully guaranteed $23.94MM base salary.
If Washington tags Cousins again in 2018, the 28-year-old signal-caller would be entitled to a 44% raise, meaning he’d be due a salary of roughly $35MM. That fact, combined with Raiders quarterback Derek Carr‘s new five-year, $125MM extension ($40MM guaranteed), means Cousins is likely looking for a deal that averages $25-28MM with $58MM in guarantees, per Jones.
“I hired my agent to do his job,” Cousins tells Stephanie Funkhouser of FOX 17. “I gotta go play football and throw touchdown passes and help our team win. I’ve got plenty to work on there so I’ll let my agent do his job. I’ll do mine and the good news is I’m under contract for this season and in a good place.”
Offseason In Review: Minnesota Vikings
One year after taking the NFC North crown with an 11-5 record, the Vikings witnessed the loss of their starting quarterback, injuries all along their offensive line, and a season-ending health issue to franchise icon Adrian Peterson. Following an 8-8 campaign and a third place divisional finish, Minnesota had several key areas to address this offseason, mostly on the offensive side of the ball.
Notable signings:
- Riley Reiff, T: Five years, $58.75MM. $26.3MM guaranteed.
- Mike Remmers, T: Five years, $30MM. $10.5MM guaranteed.
- Latavius Murray, RB: Three years, $15MM. $3.4MM guaranteed. $2.3MM available via incentives.
- Datone Jones, DE: One year, $3.75MM. $1.6MM guaranteed. $1.25MM available via incentives.
- Terence Newman, CB: One year, $3.25MM. $1.5MM guaranteed.
- Case Keenum, QB: One year, $2MM. $750K guaranteed. $250K available via incentives.
- Ryan Quigley, P: Two years, $1.565MM.
- Michael Floyd, WR: One year, $1.41MM. Maximum value of $6MM.
- Will Sutton, DT: One year, $690K.
The Vikings actually boasted enviable depth heading into the 2016 season, but injuries and other factors led the club’s front five to perform like a sieve by the end of the campaign. Phil Loadholt retired before the season got underway, John Sullivan was released, Mike Harris dealt with a mysterious illness that wiped out his entire year, and Matt Kalil and Andre Smith played only six combined games before going down with injury. The result was an over-matched offensive line that started the likes of T.J. Clemmings (among the worst offensive tackles in the NFL), ranked 30th in adjusted line yards, and 17th in adjusted sack rate.
Quarterback Sam Bradford was heavily affected by the lack of blocking up front, as he rarely had time to throw intermediate-to-deep passes and finished 33rd in average depth of target, as Matthew Coller of 1500 ESPN details. An offensive line that performed at just a mediocre level would have done wonders for the Vikings offense, so the club attacked the weakness by bringing in free agents Riley Reiff and Mike Remmers.
Both deals were overpays, to be sure, as Reiff and Remmers both graded in the middle of Pro Football Focus‘ offensive tackle rankings (Nos. 48 and 51, respectively, among 78 qualifiers). Reiff, specifically, is now the eighth-highest-paid left tackle in the NFL, and received the third-most guaranteed money. That’s an exorbitant sum for a middling lineman, especially one who didn’t even play on the blindside a year ago.
Remmers’ contract is a bit more manageable, but the fact remains that Minnesota spent large to ensure a baseline level of production — and that’s not a bad idea. With the emergence of quick passing games, it’s more important than ever to simply not be terrible up front. Not every team needs to employ a Tyron Smith or a Joe Thomas to enjoy success, as it’s weak links — instead of All Pro performances — that often differentiate between offensive lines. The Vikings are also paying for availability, as Reiff has only missed three games during his five-year career, while Remmers has played in 32 consecutive contests since becoming a full-time starter.
Running behind Reiff and Remmers will be Latavius Murray, who signed a three-year deal to leave the Raiders. Originally viewed as a replacement for Adrian Peterson, Murray’s role is now murky after the Vikings traded up in the second round to select running back Dalvin Cook. There are certainly still carries to go around, as Minnesota ran the ball 380 times a season ago, but Murray probably isn’t going to be the bell-cow back he thought he signed up to be. Mike Clay of ESPN.com (Twitter link) projects 169 carries for Cook, 111 for Murray, and 69 for Jerick McKinnon.
The Vikings’ final notable offensive addition was wide receiver Michael Floyd, who struggled to find a market after being charged with Extreme DUI last year. Floyd, whose contract with Minnesota doesn’t contain any guaranteed money, is certainly a bounce-back candidate, and could make for an excellent value signing. However, he’s likely to serve a minimum two-game suspension, so he won’t be on the field immediately. The NFL recently held a hearing on Floyd’s case.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Vikings didn’t add much to a unit that already ranked ninth in DVOA and is returning many of its players. One such returnee is cornerback Terence Newman, who miraculously graded as the league’s ninth-best corner in his age-38 season, per PFF. At some point, Newman is going to experience a decline, but until that time, he’ll continue to team with Xavier Rhodes in one of the NFL’s best secondaries. He’ll hold down the fort for 2015 first-round pick Trae Waynes, who has disappointed in two pro seasons.
Like Waynes, Datone Jones is a former first-round pick who hasn’t contributed much during his NFL career, but he could be in for a fresh start after coming over from the division-rival Packers. Yanked around from position to position in Green Bay, Jones was even playing outside linebacker with the Packers. In the the Vikings’ 4-3 front, Jones will move back to his more natural end position, and could even see time at three-technique defensive tackle.
