Seahawks To Re-Sign Luke Willson
The Seahawks have agreed to re-sign tight end Luke Willson to a one-year deal worth up to $3MM, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN.com.
Seattle reportedly offered Willson a new deal during the 2016 season, but Willson didn’t consider it a serious proposal and didn’t even respond to it. Things have seemingly changed, as Willson will now return to the Pacific Northwest for a fifth campaign. He’ll work with alongside Seahawks tight ends Jimmy Graham and Nick Vannett.
Willson, 27, ranked as PFR’s No. 5 tight end heading into the free agent period. In 2016, Willson dealt with injuries and only managed to appear in 11 games, playing in roughly a third of Seattle’s offensive snaps. During that time, he posted 15 receptions for 129 yards and two touchdowns.
Chiefs LB Derrick Johnson Accepts Paycut
The Chiefs have worked out contract restructures with linebacker Derrick Johnson and fullback Anthony Sherman, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com.
Johnson, 34, was previously scheduled to earn $4.75MM in 2017 base salary and could have made an additional $1MM in per-game roster bonuses. Instead, he’s agreed to reduce his base salary to a fully guaranteed $1MM, and will also earn a $1MM signing bonus. In sum, the cap-strapped Chiefs were able to use leverage against Johnson — who tore his Achilles last season — in order to create roughly $4.25MM in cap space.
Sherman, meanwhile, will see his base salary drop from $1.55MM to a fully guaranteed $1MM, per Yates. Additionally, his previous per-game roster bonuses of $12,500 have been slashed in half, and are now worth only $6,250 per contest. In total, the move creates about $550K in cap space for the Chiefs.
Colts Re-Sign Darius Butler
The Colts have re-signed free agent safety Darius Butler to a one-year deal, the club announced today. The pact is worth $3MM, and could increase to $4.5MM via incentives, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.
Butler was PFR’s top remaining safety still on the board, and though he’s played cornerback in the past, Butler will in fact convert to safety full-time, Schefter confirms. The 30-year-old Butler had reiterated his desire to shift to the back end at the outset of free agency, and he’ll get his wish even though the Colts released a cornerback — Patrick Robinson — earlier this week.
Indianapolis has managed to retain Butler even though a report last week indicated the two parties had reached a contract impasse. While Butler wasn’t one of the first safeties to sign a new contract during the free agent period, other clubs had expressed interest. Before re-signing with the Colts, Butler took visits with both the Bears and Redskins.
Butler, a former second-round pick, had played cornerback for most of his career before transitioning to safety in the middle of last season. Pro Football Focus still graded Butler among corners in 2016, and he finished as the league’s No. 20 CB. In 12 appearances (seven starts), Butler put up 33 tackles, three interceptions, and seven passes defensed.
Heading into the offseason, Butler ranked as PFR’s No. 48 overall free agent.
Extra Points: Ravens, Mangold, Bucs, Watson
The Ravens traded center Jeremy Zuttah earlier today, but they haven’t made contact with free agent pivot Nick Mangold as of yet, tweets Jeff Zriebec of the Baltimore Sun. Instead, Baltimore is likely to turn over center to internal option John Urschel, or look for another free agent on the open market. While contending clubs were expected to pursue Mangold, he hasn’t drawn any known interest so far this offseason. Teams are reportedly asking the 33-year-old if he’s willing to shift to guard.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Interior offensive lineman Evan Smith received a $1MM roster bonus on Wednesday, a clear indication that he’ll be a member of the Buccaneers‘ 2017 roster, as Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times details. Smith has only started seven games over the past two seasons, and will likely remain the Bucs’ top reserve at the pivot and both guard spots after center Joe Hawley re-signed earlier today. As Auman writes, Tampa Bay’s front five is currently in flux, and a number of line combinations could be in play next year. Smith, 30, will earn a base salary of $3.5MM in 2017 while carrying a cap charge of $4.5MM.
- Although one report indicated Buccaneers offensive tackle Gosder Cherilus retired yesterday, the veteran lineman has not formally decided to hang up his cleats, as Auman tweets. However, Cherilus is not seeking a new contract and won’t participate in the free agent process. This could be a “soft retirement” for Cherlius, could simply be a matter of semantics. Cherilus, 32, has played nine NFL seasons.
- Free agent linebacker Dekoda Watson is visiting a team tonight and has another meeting scheduled for Thursday, though it’s not clear at present exactly which clubs are involved, as Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post tweets. The 28-year-old Watson appeared in all 16 games for the Broncos in 2016, playing on 84% of the team’s special teams snaps. Denver is reportedly interested in retaining him.
Cardinals CB Justin Bethel Accepts Paycut
Cardinals cornerback/ace special teamer Justin Bethel has agreed to reduce his 2017 base salary from $4.5MM to $2MM, while Arizona has also deleted the 2018 year of his contract, tweets cap guru Ian Whetstone. Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com confirms (Twitter link) the Cardinals’ cap space has increased from $18.5MM to $21MM to account for the change.
Bethel, 26, has been a key special teams cog during his five-year run in Arizona, and he’s never played on fewer than two-thirds of the club’s special teams snaps. For his efforts, Bethel has earned three Pro Bowl nods and two All Pro berths. Bethel’s work on defense has been less spectacular, however, as he’s struggled through seven career starts opposite Patrick Peterson.
Near the end of the 2016 campaign, Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians notably referred to Bethel’s play as a “failure in progress.” Pro Football Focus didn’t view Bethel in such a negative light, however, handing him a 71.0 grade on 270 defensive snaps.
Bethel, a former sixth-round pick, inked a three-year, $15MM extension that included $9MM in guarantees at the tail end of the 2015 season. He won’t make it all the way through that deal, however, given that his 2018 year has now been deleted. That may have been a concession from the Cardinals, allowing Bethel to hit free agency a year earlier in exchange for him accepting a paycut. Bethel will now count for just $2.75MM on Arizona’s 2017 salary cap.
Draft Rumors: Eagles, Saints, Foster, Lewis
The 2017 NFL draft gets underway six weeks from tomorrow, so let’s take a quick look at the latest new and notes emerging from the draft realm:
- Both the Saints and the Eagles have decided to use one of their predraft visits on Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster, according to Herbie Teope of NOLA.com and Eliot Shorr-Parks of NJ.com. Each NFL club will is allowed 30 predraft visits to use at their discretion. Foster, the best off-ball linebacker in the 2017 draft and a projected top-15 pick, was sent home from the combine earlier this month following an incident with a hospital worker. That dustup shouldn’t Foster’s draft stock, and Todd McShay of ESPN.com sent Foster to Cincinnati with the ninth pick in his most recent mock draft.
- Michigan cornerback Jourdan Lewis has been charged with misdemeanor assault following an altercation with his girlfriend, as John Counts of MLive.com writes. Lewis was never formally arrested, tweets Dan Murphy of ESPN.com, but was indeed charged later on Wednesday. Ranked just outside Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com‘s top-50 prospects, Lewis may have his draft stock affected by this charge.
- Instead of seeking a sixth year of collegiate eligibility, Southern Methodist quarterback Matt Davis will enter the draft, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Davis was injured for most of the 2016 campaign, but passed for nearly 2,300 yards, 16 touchdowns, and seven interceptions the year prior. Though he’ll work out at SMU’s Pro Day, it’s unclear if Davis has any chance of being drafted.
Dolphins Inquired On Johnathan Hankins
The Dolphins have contacted free agent defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins, according to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald. Miami is unlikely to sign Hankins, however, given that he’s asking for at least $8MM annually.
Although they’ve now been connected to both Hankins and Dontari Poe, the Dolphins are only searching for a defensive tackle that’s willing to play rotational snaps behind Ndamukong Suh and Jordan Phillips, per Salguero. That type of player will preferably come at a cost of $3-4MM, so Miami will likely continue its search.
Hankins, 25, now ranks as PFR’s No. 1 free agent interior defender on the market. However, the buzz around Hankins has been virtually non-existent since the free agent period opened nearly a week ago. He’s been tangentially linked to the Redskins, but Mike Jones of the Washington post tweets Washington won’t use the money it saved by releasing Ricky Jean-Francois on Hankins (or Poe, for that matter).
49ers To Host Tim Hightower
Free agent running back Tim Hightower will take a meeting with the 49ers, according to Mike Triplett of ESPN.com.
Hightower, 30, has spent the past two years with the Saints backing up Mark Ingram. During that time, Hightower has managed 229 carries while picking up four yards per touch. He’s scored eight touchdowns on the ground, while adding 34 receptions and another score through the air. New Orleans re-signed Travaris Cadet earlier today, but that shouldn’t preclude the club from having interest in Hightower.
The 49ers currently have three running backs on their roster: Carlos Hyde, Mike Davis, and Raheem Mostert. San Francisco also inked fullback Kyle Juszczyk during the free agent period, and he’s expected to act as more of an “offensive weapon” than as a true fullback. If signed, Hightower would serve as the clear-cut No. 2 behind Hyde.
FA Rumors: Poe, Seahawks, Steelers, Jaguars
Now that free agent defensive tackle Dontari Poe has concluded his visits with the Dolphins, he’ll head home to consider offers, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. Poe has met with the Colts, Falcons, and Jaguars in addition to Miami, and will presumably sign with one of the clubs. Poe is PFR’s No. 2 free agent interior defender on the market, just behind Johnathan Hankins.
Here’s more from the free agent period:
- Although Adrian Peterson visited the Seahawks earlier this week, he never entered into negotiations with the club, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. Seattle was eyeing a younger back, and it found one in former Packer Eddie Lacy, whom the team signed to a one-year deal on Tuesday. Through six days of free agency, the key story around Peterson has been the number of clubs who aren’t interested in the ex-Vikings RB, who turns 32 next week. The Texans, Patriots, Raiders have all indicated they they’re not in contact with future Hall of Famer.
- The Seahawks may have not been all that interested in Peterson, but the club might have a different opinion on free agent linebacker Michael Wilhoite, whom they will host on a visit, tweets NFL reporter Howard Balzer. Wilhoite, 30, was a full-time starter for the 49ers from 2014-15, but only started six games last year (despite appearing in all 16 contests). In that time, Wilhoite put up 46 tackles, a half-sack, and a forced fumble.
- While the Steelers has “mild interest” in re-signing linebacker Jarvis Jones, the club never made a real effort to retain the former first-round pick before he inked a one-year deal with the Cardinals on Monday, per Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. Jones, 27, never lived up to his draft billing, but did provide solid run defense over 35 starts in Pittsburgh. The Steelers will now roll with Arthur Moats and Anthony Chickillo behind James Harrison and Bud Dupree on the edge.
- Tight end Chris Gragg visited the Jaguars but did not agree to a contract, as Gragg himself announced (Twitter link). Jacksonville head coach Doug Marrone was in Buffalo when Gragg was made a seventh-round pick in 2013, so he should have some level of familiarity with the 26-year-old. Gragg missed the entire 2016 campaign with a torn ACL.
DeShawn Shead To Visit Bills
The Bills will host cornerback DeShawn Shead on a visit, according to Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com.
Shead, recovering from an ACL and meniscus tear suffered in the postseason, wasn’t tendered by the Seahawks as a restricted free agent. A 15-game starter last season, Shead is extremely versatile, as Kapadia writes he’s capable of playing outside, inside, or at safety. On more than 1,000 defensive snaps, Shead graded as the league’s No. 38 corner, per Pro Football Focus.
Seattle would like to bring Shead back into the fold, but as many as six other teams have expressed interest, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. If Shead can generate enough of a market, he may be able to earn more than he would have under the lowest restricted free agent tender ($1.797MM).
PFR did not place Shead on its most recent list of the top free agent cornerbacks due to the uncertainty surrounding his injury status.