Falcons Sign Two Draft Picks
Today’s draft pick signings:
- The Falcons have agreed to terms with fourth-round guard Sean Harlow and fifth-round safety Damontae Kazee, the club announced today. Harlow, an Oregon State product, started 37 games at offensive tackle during his career with the Beavers. He’ll move to guard in the NFL, however, and he could conceivably have a shot to take Atlanta’s starting right guard job, especially after veteran Hugh Thornton announced his retirement earlier today. Kazee, meanwhile, holds the San Diego State record for career interceptions with 17, and will compete for time at nickelback with 2016 undrafted free agent Brian Poole.
Cardinals Sign CB Jumal Rolle
The Cardinals have agreed to a one-year deal with free agent cornerback Jumal Rolle, the club announced today. Rolle was originally tendered by the Ravens as a restricted free agent in March, but Baltimore quickly rescinded its original round offer, making Rolle a free agent.
Despite the fact that finding a cornerback to play opposite Patrick Peterson was a glaring need for the Cardinals this offseason, Arizona surprisingly didn’t add a corner during the free agent period or during the draft. Additionally, only two of the Cards’ 17 undrafted free agent signings were cornerbacks. Having lost free agent Marcus Cooper to the Bears, Arizona’s options at cornerback behind Peterson now include Justin Bethel, Harlan Miller, Brandon Williams, Eli Bouke, and Trevon Hartfield.
Rolle, admittedly, probably isn’t the top-notch starting option the Cardinals may be looking for, as he’s never started a contest during his three-year NFL career. But Rolle does offer experience (18 career games) and can also to Arizona’s depth on special teams, where the club ranked a paltry 30th in DVOA last season.
Originally an undrafted free agent out of Catawba, the 26-year-old Rolle bounced around the league before landing in a stable reserve role for the Texans in 2014. After joining the Ravens late in the 2015 campaign, Rolle tore his Achilles during the following offseason and missed the entirety of the 2016 season.
Bills Hire Brandon Beane As GM
The Bills have announced former Panthers executive Brandon Beane as their new general manager. Beane’s contract will run concurrent with that of head coach Sean McDermott, meaning Beane is signed through the 2021 campaign, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
Landing on Beane was always considered a likely outcome for Buffalo, especially given Beane’s ties with McDermott. The duo spent time together in Carolina, and will now form a tandem decision-making squad after Buffalo fired general manager Doug Whaley last week.
While it’s unclear who will have the final say over personnel choices and the makeup of the 53-man roster, there’s little doubt that McDermott is now firmly in place as a key operative in the Bills’ structure. Even with Whaley still in place during the draft, McDermott was reportedly essential as Buffalo made its picks. But McDermott’s familiarity with Beane should enable the club to quickly establish a new paradigm as it moves past the Whaley regime.
Beane wasn’t the only candidate for the Bills general manager position, as Buffalo also interviewed three other executives for the vacancy. Packers director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst, Eagles director of college scouting Trey Brown, and Texans director of player personnel Brian Gaine were also considered for the position.
Patriots Won’t Re-Sign WR Michael Floyd
While free agent wide receiver Michael Floyd is reportedly in negotiations with the Vikings and other clubs, re-signing with the Patriots is not an option, reports Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. Floyd “won’t be back” in New England in 2017, according to Reiss.
The Patriots had interest in bringing Floyd back as recently as February, but the club’s offseason machinations have made the former waiver claim expendable. New England notably acquired Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks for a package that included the No. 32 overall pick, and also traded for tight ends Dwayne Allen and James O’Shaughnessy. Additionally, the Pats signed running backs Mike Gillislee and Rex Burkhead, each of whom can help in the passing game.
Floyd, who hopes to land a new contract this week, managed four receptions for 42 yards and one touchdown after joining the Patriots in December. The 27-year-old plead guilty to “Super Extreme DUI” in February, and he’s unable to leave the state of Arizona until June 17. Floyd is likely to face an NFL suspension during the 2017 campaign.
PFR Originals: 4/30/17 – 5/7/17
The original content and analysis produced by the PFR staff during the past week:
- The Giants and Lions are reportedly interested in free agent running back LeGarrette Blount, but other NFL clubs could conceivably be eyeing the 30-year-old power back. Zach Links ran down the list of potential fits for Blount, an inventory that includes teams such as the Ravens and Dolphins.
- Blount has yet to find a new home, but other veteran running backs such as Adrian Peterson, Marshawn Lynch, and Jamaal Charles have, as they’ve landed with the Saints, Raiders, and Broncos, respectively. With that in mind, Sam Robinson asked PFR readers which runner will have the most significant impact in 2017. Thus far, Lynch is leading the voting at more than 60%.
- The deadline for teams to pick up the fifth-year options for players selected in the first round of the 2014 is May 3, but all 32 NFL clubs made their decisions with a day left on the clock. 23 of 32 players had their options exercised, five saw the options declined, and three weren’t eligible given that they’d already been released by their original clubs. I rounded up all the decisions and salaries on 2018 fifth-year options.
49ers Waive WR K.D. Cannon
The 49ers have waived wide receiver K.D. Cannon, according to David Smoak of ESPN-Central Texas (Twitter link). Cannon’s agent has confirmed the former Baylor wideout’s release, tweets Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area.
[RELATED: 49ers Waive RB Mike Davis]
Cannon had been viewed as one of the premier undrafted free agents following last week’s draft, and San Francisco handed him a $5K signing bonus and guaranteed $40K of his 2017 base salary in order to land him. But Cannon apparently didn’t show enough during the 49ers’ rookie minicamp to stick on the roster, and Maiocco speculates the club may be clearing roster space in order to ink tryout players.
Cannon, 21, declared for the draft after only three years at Baylor. In his final season with the Bears, Cannon posted 87 receptions for 1,215 yards and 13 touchdowns. The 49ers’ $45K guarantee likely means Cannon drew a significant amount of interest as an undrafted free agent, so there’s a good chance he’ll be claimed off waivers by a rival team.
San Francisco has been aggressive in signing UDFAs, as running back Matt Breida, safety Malik Golden, and tight end Cole Hikutini all received at least $15K in guaranteed money. Colorado linebacker Jimmie Gilbert, meanwhile, garnered a whopping $62K guaranteed.
5 Key Stories: 4/30/17 – 5/7/17
Jay Cutler, broadcaster. After months of retirement rumors, Cutler officially hung up his cleats last week in order to sign with FOX Sports as a color commentator. Cutler, 34, will join Kevin Burkhardt and Charles Davis in calling games each and every Sunday. The career change is permanent, says Cutler, although he did admit he could feel some regret down the line. Cutler had negotiations with both the Jets and Texans before calling it a career.
Jamaal Charles stays in the AFC West. After nine seasons in Kansas City, Charles will now spend the 2017 campaign in Denver after agreeing to a one-year deal with the Broncos. The 30-year-old back will earn a base value of $1MM, but can bring in another $2.75MM through roster bonuses and incentives. Charles joins a backfield that also includes C.J. Anderson and Devontae Booker, and he admits he isn’t sure what his role will be with the Broncos (although passing down work seems likely).
Fifth-year option decisions come due. Clubs had until May 3 to exercise or decline 2018 options on players drafted in 2014, and there were certainly some surprises among the calls. The Bills opted not to pick up wide receiver Sammy Watkins‘ option, presumably based on his lengthy injury history, while the Jaguars exercised the option for quarterback Blake Bortles despite his recent struggles (and the ~$19MM price tag). Follow every decision with PFR’s 2018 Fifth-Year Option Tracker.
Giants and Lions in on LeGarrette Blount. Any chance of Blount returning to New England seemed to have evaporated when the Patriots signed Bills restricted free agent Mike Gillislee, but Blount’s market seems to be heating up. Detroit is interested in the veteran running back after not selecting an RB in the draft, while the Giants are still eyeing Blount even after adding Clemson’s Wayne Gallman. Last week, PFR’s Zach Links looked at the eight best fits for the 30-year-old Blount.
Consistent questions on Reuben Foster. Although the 49ers reportedly would have been comfortable selecting Foster with the No. 3 overall pick, concerns are still arising about the former Alabama linebacker. Foster’s latest surgery “didn’t take,” and San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan admitted Foster could miss the 2017 campaign in a worst-case scenario.
Photos courtesy of Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.
Browns Announce 11 UDFA Signings
The Browns announced that they’ve agreed to terms with 11 undrafted college free agents. The full list of new Cleveland players is as follows:
- B.J. Bello, LB (Illinois State)
- Josh Boutte, OL (LSU)
- Ladell Fleming, LB (Northern Illinois)
- J.D. Harmon, DB (Kentucky)
- Alvin Hill, DB (Maryland)
- Jamal Marcus, DL (Akron)
- Taylor McNamara, TE (USC)
- Kai Nacua, DB (BYU)
- Kenneth Olugbode, LB (Colorado)
- Karter Schult, DL (Northern Iowa)
- Channing Stribling, DB (Michigan)
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/4/17
Today’s minor moves:
- Defensive tackle Dominique Easley signed his restricted free agent tender with the Rams today, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Easley was tendered at the original round level, which means he’ll earn a non-guaranteed base salary of $1.797MM for 2017. Because Easley is a former first-round pick, any club that signed him to an offer sheet would have had to be willing to sacrifice a first-round pick. Clearly, no team was interested in such a move, so Easley will return to Los Angeles next year before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2018.
- The Seahawks have waived running back Kelvin Taylor, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link). Taylor, 23, was selected by San Francisco in the sixth round of the 2016 draft. During his rookie campaign, Taylor spent time on the practice squads of both the Seahawks and the 49ers, and was on Seattle’s active roster for one week in December. The Florida alum is the son of former NFL running back Fred Taylor.
- The Vikings announced that they’ve waived defensive end Sterling Bailey and offensive tackle Marquis Lucas. Bailey, 24, went undrafted in 2016 and has already been with the Colts and Seahawks in addition to the Vikings. Lucas was also originally a UDFA who signed with Buffalo after last year’s draft before ending the season on Minnesota’a practice squad. Neither Bailey nor Lucas has appeared in an NFL contest.
- The Broncos have waived defensive end Iosia Iosia, wide receiver Mekale McKay, and long snapper Jeff Overbaugh, tweets Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post. None of the three have any NFL experience, as both McKay and Overbaugh were signed to futures deals in January, while Iosia latched onto the Broncos’ practice squad at the end of last season.
- After signing 21 undrafted free agents earlier this week, the Falcons have added another UDFA in Miami linebacker Jermaine Grace, the club announced today. Grace didn’t see the field in 2016, as he was dismissed from the Hurricanes squad following an investigation into Grace’s link to a luxury car rental agency.
Panthers Sign Christian McCaffrey
The Panthers are now the first club to reach a deal with a 2017 first-round pick, as the club announced it has signed running back Christian McCaffrey. Carolina has also inked second-round offensive lineman Taylor Moton and sixth-round fullback Alex Armah.
McCaffrey, the eighth overall pick in last week’s draft, should immediately factor into a Panthers offense that ranked 25th in DVOA last season. A running back by trade, McCaffrey may end up playing a good deal of receiver, especially with established veteran Jonathan Stewart still lurking in the backfield. McCaffrey should be in line for a four-year deal worth roughly $17.241MM (signing bonus of ~$10.679MM). Carolina will also hold a fifth-year option on McCaffrey for the 2021 campaign.
Moton, meanwhile, should compete for the Panthers’ starting right tackle job. Third-year pro Daryl Williams looks to be Moton’s primary competition, as Michael Oher is still dealing with concussion issues (and was recently cited for misdemeanor assault). Moton, a Western Michigan product, will earn $6.454MM over the life of his four-year contract.
In addition to signing three of their seven draft picks, the Panthers announced they’ve also agreed to terms with the following undrafted college free agents: linebacker Ben Boulware, defensive end Bryan Cox Jr., wide receiver Austin Duke, cornerback Cole Luke, and wide receiver Fred Ross.