Draft Deadline For Marshawn Lynch, Raiders Deal?
The Raiders haven’t yet hammered out a reworked contract with running back Marshawn Lynch, and he won’t be traded from Seattle to Oakland until a new deal is in place. The draft may present a deadline for a Lynch trade, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who notes the Raiders’ draft plans could alter their need for Lynch.
Oakland had hoped to have finished negotiations with Lynch (and the Seahawks) before the start of the club’s offseason program on Monday, per Rapoport. That didn’t happen, so the Raiders may be presented with a quandary when the draft begins next Thursday. If a running back the team likes is still on the board at No. 24, Oakland may simply “take the leap,” says Rapoport, and such a decision would likely end the Raiders’ pursuit of Lynch. For what it’s worth, I sent Florida State’s Dalvin Cook to the Raiders in PFR’s 2017 mock draft.
At present, the Raiders have only four backs on their roster: Jalen Richard, DeAndre Washington, Jamize Olawale, and Taiwan Jones, the latter of whom is essentially only a special teams player. Oakland could certainly use another runner on its depth chart after allowing Latavius Murray to walk in free agency, and for a time, Lynch’s arrival looked like a fait accompli.
Lynch has officially begun the process of reinstatement, although he won’t technically need to be reinstated in order to be dealt.
Titans’ Da’Norris Searcy, Harry Douglas Accept Paycuts
The Titans have agreed to contract restructures with defensive back Da’Norris Searcy and wide receiver Harry Douglas, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter links).
Searcy, 28, has actually agreed to reduce his salary in each of the next two seasons. In 2017, Searcy’s pay will decrease from $5.625MM to $3.4MM, while in 2018, his salary will drop from $6.125MM to $2.8MM. He’ll now have $750K worth of incentives built into each season, per Yates. Searcy started 14 games for the Titans last year as part of safety rotation. Tennessee has since added free agent Jonathan Cyprien, but has lost Daimion Stafford and Rashad Johnson.
Douglas, meanwhile, will see his salary cut from $3.75MM to $1.75MM, reports Yates. The 32-year-old Douglas can make up nearly all of that total ($1.75MM) through incentives. Douglas played a far less critical role than Searcy for the Titans in 2016, as he managed only 15 receptions for 210 yards in his eighth NFL campaign. He’ll be on a wideout depth chart that also includes Rishard Matthews, Tajae Sharpe, Eric Weems, and Tre McBride.
Patriots WR Danny Amendola Takes Paycut
Veteran wide receiver Danny Amendola has agreed to reduce his pay for the 2017 season, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Amendola had been scheduled to earn a $6MM base salary, but he’ll now bring in “slightly more” than the $1.6MM salary he earned in 2016, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
This restructure marks the third consecutive season that Amendola has reduced his base salary. In each of the past two occasions, Amendola has agreed to a paycut in exchange for additional guaranteed money. He’ll likely be given similar guarantees this time around, enabling him to stay on the New England roster for a fifth year. Mike Reiss of ESPN.com wrote last month that Amendola was never expected to maintain his current salary, especially after the Patriots acquired fellow pass-catcher Brandin Cooks.
Amendola, 31, appeared in 12 games for New England in 2016, and posted 23 receptions for 243 yards and four touchdowns while playing on roughly a quarter of the club’s offensive snaps. Given the presence of Cooks, Julian Edelman, Chris Hogan, and Malcolm Mitchell, Amendola could see that snap percentage fall even further in 2017.
Patriots Sign Bills RB Mike Gillislee To Offer Sheet
The Patriots have signed Bills restricted free agent running back Mike Gillislee to an offer sheet, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The deal is worth $6.4MM over two years, and contains $4MM in year one, per Rapoport. Buffalo now has five days to match the Patriots’ offer, and while the Bills haven’t yet made a final decision, they “don’t believe” they’ll match the sheet, tweets Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald.
New England hosted Gillislee — and fellow RFA back Damien Williams — on a visit last week, and the club has now further signaled its interest in the 25-year-old Gillislee. Buffalo, suprisingly, only tendered Gillislee at the original round level (at a cost of $1.797MM). Because Gillislee was drafted in the fifth round, the Patriots would only have to sacrifice a fifth-rounder in order to sign him away. The Bills have the option of matching the contract, but for another $1MM or so, the Bills could have placed the second-round tender on Gillislee and likely warded off any potential suitors.
The Patriots already have a stocked backfield after adding free agent Rex Burkhead to a depth chart that includes Dion Lewis, James White, Brandon Bolden, and D.J. Foster. But that hasn’t stopped New England from pursuing other options, as they’ve been linked to veteran Adrian Peterson in recent weeks. The Pats also reportedly have an offer on the table for LeGarrette Blount, who scored 16 touchdowns for the club in 2016.
The Bills, meanwhile, currently have less than $10MM in cap space, meaning matching the Patriots’ terms could be a problem. Losing Gillislee, who averaged an NFL-best 5.7 yards per carry on 101 attempts last season, would leave Buffalo with Jonathan Williams, Mike Tolbert, and Joe Banyard as depth pieces behind starter LeSean McCoy.
Eagles TE Brent Celek Accepts Paycut
Eagles tight end Brent Celek has agreed to a pay reduction for the 2017 season, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Scheduled to earn $4MM next year, Celek will instead take in only $3MM.
Philadelphia is right up against the salary cap at the moment: at last check, the Eagles had less than a quarter-million dollars in cap room, second-least in the NFL. Celek’s paycut will clear $1MM in cap space, but that won’t allow the Eagles to re-enter the free agent market. Indeed, Philadelphia will probably need to restructure other contracts (or release certain players) in order to sign its draft class and account for unforeseen charges throughout the season.
Celek, 32, was already set to earn $2MM in 2017 guarantees, and this pay reduction won’t affect that total. Having agreed to a contract extension last January, Celek is under contract with the Eagles thorough the 2018 campaign. Playing in a new scheme under head coach Doug Pederson, Celek saw his role drastically reduced last year, as he managed only 14 receptions for 155 and no touchdowns, all of which were career-lows.
Texans Had “Mild” Interest In Jay Cutler
The Texans contacted free agent quarterback Jay Cutler with “mild” interest, but head coach Bill O’Brien prefers incumbent Tom Savage to Cutler, according to Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com. After the Brock Osweiler fiasco of 2016, Houston’s front office decided to yield to O’Brien, and discussions with Cutler ended.
Cutler hasn’t generated much of a market thus far during the free agent period, as only the Jets have expressed real interest. New York isn’t an option after signing Josh McCown, leaving the Texans as one obvious suitor. But Houston reportedly wasn’t interested in Cutler — or another veteran quarterback, Colin Kaepernick — even after learning Tony Romo was no longer a possibility. At present, the Texans have only two signal-callers on the roster: Savage and Brandon Weeden.
That depth chart figures to change in the coming weeks, however, as Houston is fully expected to land a quarterback in the draft. O’Brien “absolutely loves” Texas Tech passer Patrick Mahomes, and the Texans may indeed select Mahomes if he falls to No. 25. Other options in the draft might include Mitch Trubisky, Deshaun Watson, and DeShone Kizer in the first round, or Davis Webb, Nathan Peterman, or Brad Kaaya on Day 2 or 3.
Cutler, meanwhile, is still considering the possibility of retirement. If no other clubs jump in with interest, Cutler’s decision to hang up his cleats may not be voluntary.
NFL Closes Aqib Talib Investigation
The NFL has formally closed its investigation into Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib‘s 2016 shooting episode, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter links). As was expected, the league will not discipline Talib with either a suspension or a fine.
[RELATED: Broncos Exercise Bradley Roby’s 2018 Option]
Talib, of course, was not charged with a crime after Dallas police concluded the veteran defensive back shot himself. On the night of the incident, Talib reportedly told police he was at a park when he was shot, but the police were investigating the evening in full. “Everything was a blur and I was too intoxicated to remember what happened,” said Talib at the time. Authorities never recovered the weapon used in the shooting, and few (if any) witnesses were talking about what happened.
Talib, 31, isn’t getting off completely scot-free, however: Pelissero reports Talib must complete a firearm safety course and provide a list of the weapons he owns. Compared to the sanctions that Talib could have faced, however, those requirements seem infinitesimally insignificant. Talib is under contract with the Broncos through the 2019 campaign.
Seahawks Decline To Match 49ers’ Garry Gilliam Offer Sheet
The Seahawks have opted not to match the 49ers’ offer sheet to restricted free agent offensive tackle Garry Gilliam, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
San Francisco originally made a proposal earlier to Gilliam earlier this week, but Gilliam rejected the initial offer. The 49ers came back with a one-year deal worth $2.2MM ($1.4MM guaranteed). In contrast, Gilliam would have earned a non-guaranteed base salary of $1.797MM under the terms of his RFA tender with the Seahawks. Seattle deployed the original round tender on Gilliam, but because he entered the league as an undrafted free agent, the Seahawks won’t receive any draft pick compensation for his loss.
Gilliam, 26, will conceivably compete for time at right tackle with the 49ers. But it’s not clear he’ll be much of an upgrade over Trent Brown given that Gilliam graded as a bottom-10 offensive tackle in 2016, per Pro Football Focus. Gilliam does offer experience — 44 career games, including 30 starts — and will serve as a swing tackle, at worst. He’ll hit unrestricted free agency in 2018.
Broncos To Pick Up Bradley Roby’s Option
The Broncos are expected to exercise cornerback Bradley Roby‘s 2018 fifth-year option, which is valued at $8.526MM, according to Mike Klis of 9News. 
That $8.526MM salary will place Roby inside the top-20 in terms of annual cornerback figures, just ahead of fellow Broncos corner Chris Harris. It’s unclear if the 24-year-old Roby is worth that amount of cash, especially given that he’s third in line for playing time behind Harris and Aqib Talib. That rotation doesn’t figure to change much, as both Harris and Talib are signed through the 2019 campaign.
Given the prevalence of nickel packages in today’s NFL, Roby still played on roughly 60% of Denver’s defensive snaps in 2016. But he wasn’t all that effective, as Pro Football Focus graded him as just the No. 83 corner among 111 qualifiers. PFF gave Roby much more positive marks over the course of his first two seasons in the league, so the Broncos will exercise his option in the hopes of him reaching that level of play once again.
The fifth-year option is guaranteed for injury only until the first day of the 2018 league year, so unless Roby suffers a major health issue, the Broncos won’t be completely locked into Roby’s salary for the 2018 season. But as Klis notes, Roby and his representatives could conceivably use that ~$8.5MM total as a foundation in extension talks, basing any long-term salary around that number.
Cowboys Exercise Zack Martin’s 2018 Option
The Cowboys have officially exercised their 2018 fifth-year option on guard Zack Martin, the club announced today. The option will be worth $9.341MM, tweets Field Yates of ESPN.com.
The decision comes as no surprise, given that Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones said in January Dallas planned to pick up the option. Martin, 26, has started all 48 games since joining Dallas three years ago, and has emerged as one of the league’s best guard on one of the NFL’s finest offensive lines. Playing alongside talents such as left tackle Tyron Smith and center Travis Frederick, Martin graded as the third-best guard of 2016, per Pro Football Focus. Jones called an eventual Martin extension a “big priority,” and Martin himself is in favor of a long-term deal.
“It would be huge,” Martin said. “I’m not real worried about that. I’m worried about playing. Obviously I’ll be here for hopefully a long time. These guys make it fun to come to work every day…Hopefully we can get something done.”
A new contract won’t come cheap, especially after Kevin Zeitler reset the guard market last month by inking a five-year deal with the Browns that pays him $12MM annually. Martin, a two-time All Pro and three-time Pro Bowler, will surely set Zeitler’s pact as his target. The Cowboys, meanwhile, have already invested significant resources in the offensive line, as both Smith and Frederick are under contract via long-term deals.