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Author: Dallas Robinson

Minor NFL Transactions: 5/1/19

By | at May 1, 2019 7:31 pm

Today’s minor moves:

Cleveland Browns

  • Waived: G David Bright

Jacksonville Jaguars

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Signed: S P.J. Locke (undrafted college free agent)

Seattle Seahawks

  • Waived: OL Marcus Henry
2 comments Cleveland Browns Jacksonville Jaguars Los Angeles Rams Miami Dolphins Philadelphia Eagles Pittsburgh Steelers Seattle Seahawks Transactions

Steelers To Decline CB Artie Burns’ Option

By | at May 1, 2019 6:33 pm

The Steelers are not expected to exercise cornerback Artie Burns‘ fifth-year option for the 2020 season, as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets.

[RELATED: 2020 Fifth-Year Option Decision Tracker]

Burns turns 24 years old today, so Pittsburgh’s decision comes as an unwelcome birthday present. Had the Steelers opted to pick up his option, Burns would have been scheduled to earn $9.954MM in 2020, but that total would have guaranteed for injury only. If Burns had remained healthy but underwhelmed with his play during the upcoming season, Pittsburgh could have cut bait with no financial ramifications.

The 25th pick of the 2016 draft, Burns started 25 games during his first two years with the Steelers, posting four total interceptions during that time. Things fell apart in 2018, as Burns was benched multiple times and ultimately started only six contests. Football Outsiders charted Burns with just a 42% success rate in coverage, which would have ranked him in the bottom-third of the league had he posted enough snaps to qualify.

Burns isn’t necessarily a lock for the Steelers’ 2019 roster, as the club would incur only ~$1.3MM in dead money by waiving him in the coming months. If he does return, Burns is likely to be buried on Pittsburgh’s secondary depth chart. Joe Haden, Mike Hilton, and free agent addition Steven Nelson project as the Steelers’ starting corners, while 2017 third-round pick Cameron Sutton and rookie third-rounder Justin Layne will also compete for snaps.

7 comments Pittsburgh Steelers Transactions

Texans To Sign S Jahleel Addae

By | at May 1, 2019 5:58 pm

The Texans have agreed to sign free agent safety Jahleel Addae, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. 

Addae, 29, was released by the Chargers just prior to the start of free agency after spending six years with the club. While a number of other safeties found hefty — and in Landon Collins‘ case, record-breaking — contracts on the open market, Addae hadn’t generated any known interest since being cut loose by Los Angeles.

The fact that he’s nearing 30 years of age may have softened Addae’s market, but his sub-par play in 2018 likely also had something to with his lack of suitors. Addae started all 16 games for the second consecutive season, but Pro Football Focus (which had previously assigned Addae high marks) graded him as just the No. 76 safety among 93 qualifiers. That rating was almost all a result of a precipitous decline in his pass coverage grade, although his run defense also took a slight step backward.

Where exactly Addae will play in Houston is unclear. The Texans have already replaced Tyrann Mathieu with free agent addition Tashaun Gipson, while 2018 rookie Justin Reid will return after playing nearly 1,000 snaps during his debut campaign. All three of Addae, Gipson, Reid played primarily free safety last season, but Addae spent the most total snaps (207) in the box, so he could play something of a third linebacker role if needed.

1 comment Houston Texans Transactions

Redskins Decline WR Josh Doctson’s Option

By | at May 1, 2019 5:17 pm

The Redskins have declined wide receiver Josh Doctson‘s fifth-year option for 2020, according to JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link).

[RELATED: 2020 Fifth-Year Option Decision Tracker]

Doctson was part of a 2016 first-round receiver class that has — for the most part — failed to live up to expectations. Of the four wideouts selected in the top-32 of that draft, only the Texans’ Will Fuller had his fifth-year option exercised. Vikings pass-catcher Laquon Treadwell joined Doctson in having his option declined, while Corey Coleman‘s option wasn’t even applicable given that he’s been released multiple times.

Had the Redskins picked up his option, Docston would have been due $10.162MM for the 2020 campaign, an untenable figure given his lack of NFL production. Doctson appeared in only two games in his rookie season due to injury, and he averaged just 40 receptions, 517 yards, and four touchdowns in each of the past two years. Efficiency was a problem for the 26-year-old in 2018, as he ranked 96th out of 107 qualifying receivers in yards per route run, per Pro Football Focus.

Washington added two receivers in the 2019 draft, taking Ohio State’s Terry McLaurin in the third round and North Carolina State’s Kelvin Harmon in the sixth. They’ll join a roster that already includes Doctson, Paul Richardson, Brian Quick, and Trey Quinn, among others.

6 comments Transactions Washington Commanders

5 Key NFL Stories: 4/21/19 – 4/28/19

By | at April 28, 2019 4:28 pm

2019 NFL Draft in the books. After three days and 254 selections, the 2019 NFL draft is complete. Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray came off the board to the Cardinals at No. 1 overall, while Ohio State edge rusher Nick Bosa (49ers), Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams (Jets), Clemson defensive end Clelin Ferrell (Raiders), and LSU linebacker Devin White (Buccaneers) rounded out the top-five. PFR tracked all the results, both by round and by team.

Tyreek Hill investigation re-opened. After prosecutors declined to press charges against Hill following allegations of child abuse, audio emerged in which Hill admits to abusing his three-year-old son (who now has a broken arm) and misleading detectives. Hill, who also threatens his fiancée on tape, has been indefinitely banned by the Chiefs but remains on the club’s roster. Meanwhile, authorities have since re-opened the criminal investigation against Hill.

Cardinals trade Josh Rosen to Dolphins. After taking Murray first overall, Arizona found a trade partner for Rosen in the Dolphins, who sacrificed the No. 62 pick and a 2020 fifth-rounder in exchange for the UCLA product. Miami initially balked at surrendering its own 48th overall pick for Rosen, but subsequently turned that selection into No. 62, No. 200, and a 2020 second-rounder. Because the Cardinals already paid Rosen his signing bonus, the Dolphins will owe the 2018 No. 10 pick less than $7MM over the next three seasons.

Chiefs acquire Frank Clark. Kansas City had already traded its own franchise-tagged edge rusher this offseason, shipping Dee Ford to the 49ers for a 2020 second-round pick. Now, they’ve picked up Clark, who was on his own franchise tender with the Seahawks. Kansas City sent a first-round pick (No. 29), a third-round pick (No. 92) and the lower of their 2020 second-round picks to Seattle in exchange for Clark and a third-round choice (No. 84). The Chiefs have since extended Clark on a five-year, $104MM deal that contains $43.8MM guaranteed.

Marshawn Lynch retires, and Doug Baldwin may be forced to follow suit. Lynch has again retired, hanging up his cleats after spending the past two seasons with the Raiders. He originally announced the end of his career after the 2016 campaign, but came back to play for his hometown team. Baldwin, another member of the Seahawks’ championship run, may be forced to end his career after dealing with knee, shoulder, and hernia injuries.

2 comments Week In Review

Sebastian Janikowski Announces Retirement

By | at April 28, 2019 3:54 pm

Longtime NFL kicker Sebastian Janikowski has announced his retirement after 19 seasons, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Janikowski, 41, was selected 17th overall by the Raiders in the 2000 draft and spent the subsequent 18 campaigns in Oakland. Only one other kicker (Steve Little in 1978) has ever been chosen in the first round of the draft, and only three kickers have been selected in the first three rounds since Janinkowski went in the first (Nate Kaeding, Mike Nugent, Roberto Aguayo).

Clearly, it would have been difficult for any kicker to live up to Janikowski’s draft billing, but he did accrue statistics simply by being available. He’ll finish his career with the ninth-most field goal attempts (563) in league history, although his conversion rate (80.4%) ranks just 37th. Pro Football Reference’s approximate value metric, which attempts to boil down a player’s contributions to a single number, ranks Janikowski as the 13th-most valuable kicker in NFL history.

A Pro Bowler and second-team All-Pro member in 2011, Janikowski left the Raiders in 2018, signing a contract with the Seahwaks after spending the previous season on injured reserve. He made 22-of-27 attempts for Seattle, and his 81.5% conversion rate ranked just 23rd among all kickers. Janikowski wasn’t expected to be re-signed by the Seahawks, who have since added free agent Jason Myers.

Janikowksi will hang up his cleats as the NFL’s all-time highest-paid kicker with more than $53MM in career earnings. PFR extends its best wishes to “Seabass” as he enters retirement.

9 comments Las Vegas Raiders Seattle Seahawks

Jaguars Sign 21 Undrafted Free Agents

By | at April 28, 2019 3:31 pm

The Jaguars have become the third NFL team — joining the Steelers and Chargers — to announced their crop of undrafted free agent signings following the conclusion of the 2019 draft. Jacksonville agreed to terms with the following 21 UDFAs:

Saivion Smith, in particular, is an interesting addition for the Jaguars, as he’d been mentioned as a possible third-round pick earlier this year. Lance Zierlein of NFL.com pegged Smith as a Round 4 or 5 selection, noting the Alabama product’s ability as a press-man corner but cautioning that he must improve his consistency. Simth could compete for snaps behind incumbent Jacksonville corners Jalen Ramsey, A.J. Bouye, and D.J. Hayden.

4 comments Jacksonville Jaguars Transactions

North Rumors: Browns, Duke, Lions, Snacks

By | at April 28, 2019 2:22 pm

Although Browns running back Duke Johnson has requested a trade, and Cleveland is believed to have shopped him, there’s seemingly no guaranteed he will be moved, as head coach Freddie Kitchens indicated to Tony Grossi of ESPN.com. “Duke’s under contract. I’ve said this for a month now, I don’t know where all this trade talk started happening,” said Kitchens. “People just assumed we would trade him because we signed another good football player [Kareem Hunt]. I like good football players, and I like as many as I can get.

“At this point in time, him asking for a trade doesn’t matter to me. He’s a Cleveland Brown. Duke’s the type of the guy who’s going to show up and he’s going to do his job and he’s going do his job well. That’s all I can ask for as a coach. His demands, I’m not impacted by that one bit.”

Hunt is suspended for the first eight games of the 2019 season, so the Browns will need a back to play behind starter Nick Chubb. Johnson, 25, is under contract through 2021 thanks to the three-year, $15.6MM extension he signed last summer. While he handled only 40 carries a year ago, Johnson managed 47 catches and was one of the NFL’s most efficient receiving backs, per Football Outsiders.

Here’s more from the NFL’s two North divisions:

  • Defensive tackle Damon Harrison isn’t participating in the Lions‘ offseason program, but his absence isn’t related to his request for a new contact, general manager Bob Quinn told Justin Rogers of the Detroit News. “The offseason program is voluntary,” Quinn said. “We have different guys, in different stages and different things in their lives, just like we have every year. So, Damon hasn’t been here the last couple of weeks, but we’ve communicated with him, talked to him multiple times and I’m sure we’ll see him here soon.” Harrison, whom the Lions acquired from the Giants last year in exchange for a fifth-round pick, has two years remaining on his current deal, with cap charges north of $7MM in each season.
  • The Ravens were attempting to sign Arizona defensive tackle P.J. Johnson to an undrafted free agent deal when he was selected by the Lions with the 229th overall pick, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “It was kind of funny,” Johnson said. “I tried to be as polite as possible,” Johnson said, “but get off fast: ‘Excuse me, but the Lions are calling. I’ve got to go.’ ” Baltimore did not have a selection after No. 197, so the club would have had to trade back up (using 2020 capital) in order to land Johnson.
  • Miami defensive tackle Gerald Willis surprisingly went undrafted before reportedly inking a UDFA deal with the Ravens, and his fall was likely caused by a few off-field issues, as Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic writes. Willis allegedly got into an altercation with Skyler Mornhinweg (son of ex-Ravens offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg) before being dismissed at Florida, while some former Miami coaches also bad-mouthed Willis, per Zrebiec. The current Hurricanes staff, however, praised Willis.
6 comments 2019 NFL Draft Baltimore Ravens Cleveland Browns Detroit Lions

2019 NFL Draft Results By Round

By | at April 27, 2019 5:25 pm

Listed below are all 254 picks of the 2019 NFL draft, broken down by round, and featuring trades.

Here are the complete 2019 NFL draft results:

Round One:

  1. Arizona Cardinals: Kyler Murray, QB (Oklahoma)
  2. San Francisco 49ers: Nick Bosa, DE (Ohio State)
  3. New York Jets: Quinnen Williams, DT (Alabama)
  4. Oakland Raiders: Clelin Ferrell, DE (Clemson)
  5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Devin White, LB (LSU)
  6. New York Giants: Daniel Jones, QB (Duke)
  7. Jacksonville Jaguars: Josh Allen, DE (Kentucky)
  8. Detroit Lions: T.J. Hockenson, TE (Iowa)
  9. Buffalo Bills: Ed Oliver, DT (Houston)
  10. Pittsburgh Steelers (from Denver): Devin Bush, LB (Michigan)
  11. Cincinnati Bengals: Jonah Williams, T (Alabama)
  12. Green Bay Packers: Rashan Gary, DE (Michigan)
  13. Miami Dolphins: Christian Wilkins, DT (Clemson)
  14. Atlanta Falcons: Chris Lindstrom, G (Boston College)
  15. Washington Redskins: Dwayne Haskins, QB (Ohio State)
  16. Carolina Panthers: Brian Burns, DE (Florida State)
  17. New York Giants (from Cleveland): Dexter Lawrence, DT (Clemson)
  18. Minnesota Vikings: Garrett Bradbury, C (North Carolina State)
  19. Tennessee Titans: Jeffery Simmons, DT (Mississippi State)
  20. Denver Broncos (from Pittsburgh): Noah Fant, TE (Iowa)
  21. Green Bay Packers (from Seattle): Darnell Savage, S (Maryland)
  22. Philadelphia Eagles (from Baltimore): Andre Dillard, T (Washington State)
  23. Houston Texans: Tytus Howard, T (Alabama State)
  24. Oakland Raiders (from Chicago): Josh Jacobs, RB (Alabama)
  25. Baltimore Ravens (from Philadelphia): Marquise Brown, WR (Oklahoma)
  26. Washington Redskins (from Indianapolis): Montez Sweat, DE (Mississippi State)
  27. Oakland Raiders (from Dallas): Johnathan Abram, S (Mississippi State)
  28. Los Angeles Chargers: Jerry Tillery, DT (Notre Dame)
  29. Seattle Seahawks (from Kansas City): L.J. Collier, DE (TCU)
  30. New York Giants (from New Orleans via Green Bay and Seattle): Deandre Baker, CB (Georgia)
  31. Atlanta Falcons (from Los Angeles Rams): Kaleb McGary, T (Washington)
  32. New England Patriots: N’Keal Harry, WR (Arizona State)

Round Two:

  1. Arizona Cardinals: Byron Murphy, CB (Washington)
  2. Indianapolis Colts (from New York Jets): Rock Ya-Sin, CB (Temple)
  3. Jacksonville Jaguars (from Oakland): Jawaan Taylor, T (Florida)
  4. San Francisco 49ers: Deebo Samuel, WR (South Carolina)
  5. Carolina Panthers (from New York Giants via Seattle): Greg Little, T (Ole Miss)
  6. Buffalo Bills (from Jacksonville via Oakland): Cody Ford, T (Oklahoma)
  7. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Sean Murphy-Bunting, CB (Central Michigan)
  8. Oakland Raiders (from Buffalo): Trayvon Mullen, CB (Clemson)
  9. Denver Broncos: Dalton Risner, T (Kansas State)
  10. Denver Broncos (from Cincinnati): Drew Lock, QB (Missouri)
  11. Detroit Lions: Jahlani Tavai, LB (Hawaii)
  12. Green Bay Packers: Elgton Jenkins, OL (Mississippi State)
  13. New England Patriots Los Angeles Rams (from Atlanta via Los Angeles Rams): JoeJuan Williams, CB (Vanderbilt)
  14. Cleveland Browns (from Washington via Indianapolis): Greedy Williams, CB (LSU)
  15. Seattle Seahawks (from Carolina): Marquise Blair, S (Utah)
  16. New Orleans Saints (from Miami): Erik McCoy, OL (Texas A&M)
  17. Indianapolis Colts (from Cleveland Browns): Ben Banogu, LB (TCU)
  18. Minnesota Vikings: Irv Smith Jr., TE (Alabama)
  19. Tennessee Titans: A.J. Brown, WR (Ole Miss)
  20. Cincinnati Bengals (from Pittsburgh via Denver): Drew Sample, TE (Washington)
  21. Philadelphia Eagles (from Baltimore): Miles Sanders, RB (Penn State)
  22. Houston Texans (from Seattle): Lonnie Johnson, CB (Kentucky)
  23. Houston Texans: Max Scharping, T (Northern Illinois)
  24. Kansas City Chiefs (from Chicago via New England and Los Angeles Rams): Mecole Hardman, WR (Georgia)
  25. Philadelphia Eagles: JJ Arcega-Whiteside, WR (Stanford)
  26. Dallas Cowboys: Trysten Hill, DT (Central Florida)
  27. Indianapolis Colts: Parris Campbell, WR (Ohio State)
  28. Los Angeles Chargers: Nasir Adderley, S (Delaware)
  29. Los Angeles Rams (from Kansas City): Taylor Rapp, S (Washington)
  30. Arizona Cardinals (from New Orleans via Miami): Andy Isabella, WR (Massachusetts)
  31. Kansas City Chiefs (from Los Angeles Rams): Juan Thornhill, S (Virginia)
  32. Seattle Seahawks (from New England): D.K. Metcalf, WR (Ole Miss)

Read more

32 comments 2019 NFL Draft Newsstand

2019 NFL Draft Results By Team

By | at April 27, 2019 5:24 pm

Listed below are all 254 picks of the 2019 NFL draft, broken down by team. You can find a complete breakdown of the draft results by round right here.

Here are the complete 2019 NFL draft results by team:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Read more

2 comments 2019 NFL Draft Newsstand
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