FA Rumors: Okung, Soliai, Weddle, Hayward
Free agent left tackle Russell Okung has an offer in hand from the Steelers, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link), while Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reports (Twitter link) that Okung has no other visits planned at this time. Okung is just one of a few offensive tackles whom Pittsburgh has either met with or plans to meet with, including Ryan Harris and Chris Hairston. Kelvin Beachum, the Steelers’ left tackle for the past few seasons, remains unsigned, and is taking visits with other clubs.
Let’s dive into the latest free agent news…
- Former Falcons defensive tackle Paul Soliai will visit the division-rival Panthers, tweets Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports. Soliai, 32, was released by Atlanta on the first day of the free agent period after spending two years with the club. Carolina has already released defensive tackle Dwan Edwards, so Soliai could be a nice addition to the Panthers’ interior rotation.
- Another free agent defensive tackle — ex-Patriot Sealver Siliga — will take a meeting with the Seahawks, according to Garafolo (Twitter link). Siliga, 26 next month, was not offered a restricted free agent tender by New England despite appearing in 13 games for the club last season.
- The Seahawks will also meet with running back Lance Dunbar, reports Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The 26-year-old Dunbar was off to a nice start with the Cowboys in 2015, catching 21 passes out of the backfield in just four games before a torn ACL knocked him out for the remainder of the season. Seattle will be the second NFC West visit for Dunbar, who’s also met with the 49ers.
- Free agent guard Amini Silatolu will visit the Cardinals today, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The former-second pick hasn’t been a full-time starter since his rookie season in 2012, but he’s only 26 years old, and could help fill in at guard if Arizona follows through on its proposed move of Jonathan Cooper to center.
- Eric Weddle is expected to narrow his choice to two teams soon, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The veteran safety is reportedly choosing between the Ravens, Steelers, Cowboys, and Raiders.
- Before agreeing to a three-year deal with the Chargers earlier today, cornerback Casey Hayward also drew interest from the Chiefs and 49ers, tweets Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
- Cardinals backup quarterback Drew Stanton said the Colts, Titans, Dolphins, and Cowboys all showed interest in signing him before he agreed to a new deal with Arizona, according to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Details On C.J. Anderson/Dolphins Offer Sheet
By using the low restricted free agent tender on running back C.J. Anderson, the Broncos opened themselves up to losing the 25-year-old, and just days later, the Dolphins signed Anderson to an offer sheet worth $18MM over four years. Mike Klis of 9 News was the first to report Anderson’s signing, and now he provides the details of Miami’s offer sheet.
Anderson would earn $6MM total in 2016, made up of a guaranteed $675K base salary, a $5.25MM signing bonus, and a $100K workout bonus. In 2017, he’d earn a $2.9MM base salary, $1.7MM of which would be guaranteed, and he’d have another $100K workout bonus. In both 2018 and 2019, Anderson would have base salaries of $4.5MM, neither of which would be guaranteed.
As Klis notes, the most difficult aspect of the contract from the Broncos’ perspective is the $6MM guarantee in 2016. Denver only has about $12.5MM in cap space at the moment, and they still need to find a starting quarterback after losing Brock Osweiler to the Texans. So while the rest of the offer sheet is pretty reasonable, it’s the 2016 terms that might make-or-break the decision for the Broncos.
Of course, for less than $1MM in extra expenditures, Denver could have likely protected itself against losing Anderson. The low tender is worth $1.671MM, while the second-round tender (which would have entitled the Broncos to a second-round pick had they declined to match an offer sheet) is worth $2.553MM, just $882K more. Denver clearly misread the market for Anderson, and they’d be admitting that mistake even further by matching Miami’s offer.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Chargers, Casey Hayward Agree To Deal
3:45pm: Hayward will receive $6.8MM in guaranteed money, reports Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Jounal-Sentinel (Twitter link).
2:53pm: The Chargers have agreed to terms with free agent cornerback Casey Hayward, according to Rand Getlin of NFL.com (Twitter link). Hayward will sign a three-year, $15.3MM deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
The 26-year-old Hayward had spent the entirety of his four-year career with the Packers, but 2015 was his first season a full-time starter. Hayward started 11 games, playing 87% of Green Bay’s defensive snaps, and while he didn’t post any interceptions, he did defense six passes, and graded as the league’s No. 16 corner according to Pro Football Focus.
In San Diego, Hayward will join an impressive group of corners that includes Brandon Flowers and Jason Verrett, and while Hayward has shown that he can play on the outside, he’ll likely line up in the slot — where’s he proven to be one the NFL’s truly elite defenders — with the Chargers. The signing of Hayward could be an indication that San Diego is bracing to lose fellow corner Patrick Robinson, who is also an unrestricted free agent, and seems unlikely to return to the Chargers as what would now be their fourth corner.
The Chargers have been relatively active during the free agent period — in the secondary alone, the club also added former Colts safety Dwight Lowery in addition to Hayward. San Diego got stronger on its defensive line with the addition of Brandon Mebane, and on the offensive side of the ball, re-signed veteran tight end Antonio Gates and brought in former Browns wide receiver Travis Benjamin.
Green Bay, meanwhile, will rely on Sam Shields, Damarious Randall, and Quinten Rollins to headline their group of corners for the foreseeable future. The Packers have a history of re-signing their own internal free agents, so it’s a little surprising that they weren’t able to reach an agreement with Hayward, who was not only drafted and developed by Green Bay, but signed for a very reasonable annual value of $5.1MM.
Hayward ranked as PFR’s No. 29 overall free agent, and the No. 4 corner on the market. The options listed ahead of Hayward — Janoris Jenkins, Sean Smith, and Prince Amukamara — have all reached new agreements, leaving Brandon Boykin, Leon Hall, and the aforementioned Robinson as the best remaining cornerbacks available.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Buccaneers, Chris Conte Agree To Terms
The Buccaneers have agreed to re-sign safety Chris Conte, according to Gil Arcia of TheBayCave.com (Twitter link). Jenna Laine of Sports Talk 1040 and Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (Twitter links) have since confirmed the deal. It’ll be a one-year pact, per Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link).
Conte, 27, joined Tampa Bay last offseason, agreeing to a one-year deal worth $1.5MM that reunited him with former Bears head coach Lovie Smith. Smith, of course, was fired earlier this year and replaced by offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter, but Conte still has ties with the Buccaneers staff, as new Tampa secondary coach Jim Hoke coached Conte in Chicago.
In his first season with the Bucs, Conte started 13 games, and played the second-most snaps of any Tampa defensive back. He posted 59 tackles, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles, and graded as the No. 32 safety per Pro Football Focus before suffering a knee injury in Week 15 that ultimately landed him on injured reserve.
Conte earned an honorable mention on PFR’s list of the best free agent safeties.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Week In Review: 3/6/16 – 3/13/16
Although we’ll typically round up every major transaction and bit of news in our Week in Review, the free agent frenzy renders that approach completely untenable. We’ll highlight the key moves here, but remember that you can visit PFR’s Top 50 Free Agents post to see that status of the league’s top FAs; click on the Newsstand tag to filter the site down to the largest news stories; or use the Transactions tag to focus on roster movement.
Top 10 Free Agents:
- Giants – Olivier Vernon, DE (five years,$85MM)
- Jaguars – Malik Jackson, DE (six years, $85.5MM)
- Texans – Brock Osweiler, QB (four years, $72MM)
- Raiders – Kelechi Osemele, OL (five years, $58.5MM)
- Giants – Janoris Jenkins, CB (five years, $62.5MM)
- Raiders – Bruce Irvin, LB (four years, $37MM)
- Giants – Jason Pierre-Paul (one year, $10MM)
- Giants – Damon Harrison, DT (five years, $46.25MM)
- Raiders – Sean Smith, CB (four years, $40MM)
- Falcons – Alex Mack, C (five years, $45MM)
Best Remaining Free Agents:
- Russell Okung, T (No. 11)
- Kelvin Beachum, T (No. 15)
- Eric Weddle, S (No. 17)
- Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB (No. 19)
- Greg Hardy, DE (No. 21)
- Donald Penn, T (No. 26)
- Casey Hayward, CB (No. 29)
- Andre Smith, T (No. 38)
- Reggie Nelson, S (No. 41)
- Nick Fairley, DT (No. 43)
- Rueben Randle, WR (No. 49)
Trades:
- Broncos – acquired QB Mark Sanchez from the Eagles in exchange for a conditional 2017 seventh-round pick
- Dolphins – acquired LB Kiko Alonso, CB Byron Maxwell, and pick No. 13 from the Eagles in exchange for pick No. 8
- Titans – acquired RB DeMarco Murray and pick No. 113 from the Eagles in exchange for pick No. 100
West Notes: Kaepernick, Ware, Dunlap, Irvin
Colin Kaepernick should call the 49ers‘ bluff and rescind his trade request, opines Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Kaepernick’s $11.9MM base salary becomes fully guaranteed on April 1 — the Browns reportedly are willing to send a third-round pick to San Francisco in exchange for Kaepernick, but only if the quarterback agrees to lower his salary. The 49ers don’t want to pay that total, either, so Florio argues that if Kaepernick drops his request to be dealt, he forces the Niners to either guarantee him almost $12MM or release him, allowing Kaepernick to choose his next destination.
Here’s more the NFL’s two West divisions…
- We learned earlier today that as part of his restructure, Broncos linebacker DeMarcus Ware can earn back all the money he agreed to cut through sack-based incentives. Per Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com, Ware can earn between $1.25MM and $3.5MM when he hits eight, nine, 11, and 13 sacks. It’s a smart structure by Denver — because Ware posted 7.5 sacks in 2015, every penny of those incentives will be labeled “not likely to be earned,” meaning the club won’t have to carry any portion of that total on its 2016 cap.
- Chargers left tackle King Dunlaps‘s 2016 base salary of $4.5MM became fully guaranteed today, as Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune notes (Twitter link). Dunlap, entering the second year of a four-year deal, will count for roughly $6.34MM on San Diego’s cap next year.
- Former Seahawks linebackers coach — and current Raiders defensive coordinator — Ken Norton Jr. played a large role in luring Bruce Irvin to Oakland, as Irvin explains to Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com. “I wanted to get back with him,” Irvin said of Norton Jr. “Like I said before, that guy, he’s done a lot for me, not only on the field, but off the field. He saved my career by bringing me from defensive end to a linebacker, so I have the utmost respect for that guy.”
- In a separate column, Florio reports that agents are advising their clients not to sign contracts with the Rams that seem to be bound by Missouri laws. The issue, per Florio, is that California, where the Rams will play next season, has much more pro-labor workers’ rights laws, thus the club would rather the deals be controlled by Missouri language.
South Notes: Fleener, Weddle, Amukamara
The Colts chose to re-sign Dwayne Allen over fellow tight end Coby Fleener, and the latter went on to sign a five-year, $36MM deal with the Saints. And according to Fleener, it doesn’t sound Indianapolis put up too much of a fight to keep him. “The Colts’ lack of interest and the Saints’ interest made going to New Orleans an easy choice,” Fleener told Mike Wells of ESPN.com.
Here are a few more notes from the South divisions…
- Another former Colt, linebacker Jerrell Freeman, says the club never made him a free agent offer, according to Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). That seems to conflict from a report earlier today that indicated Indianapolis offered Freeman the same contract he ultimately signed with the Bears, but the dispute could stem from the notion that Freeman wasn’t offered a deal during free agency — this afternoon’s report said the Colts gave Freeman their proposal prior to March 9.
- The Buccaneers are not among the contenders for free agent safety Eric Weddle, tweets Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. Weddle is reportedly weighing offers from four teams, thought to be the Ravens, Steelers, Cowboys, and Raiders.
- Cornerback Prince Amukamara had other free agent trips planned, but he never got around to taking them after finding that he liked what the Jaguars were offering, Amukamara explained to reporters, including John Oehser of Jaguars.com. Amukamara agreed to a one-year deal with Jacksonville.
TE Zach Miller To Visit Rams
Veteran tight end Zach Miller hasn’t found a new home thus far in free agency, but he has now set up his first reported visit. Miller has scheduled a meeting with the Rams on Sunday, according to Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Miller, who spent the 2015 season with the Bears, could still return to Chicago, as reports indicated that the two sides had resumed negotiations on Tuesday night — the club is looking to trade Martellus Bennett, so Miller, if re-signed, could take over as the Bears’ No. 1 tight end.. But the Rams would make a lot of sense for Miller, especially after the club released fellow tight Jared Cook earlier this month. Los Angeles still has Lance Kendricks on the roster, but the team doesn’t have a lot of other reliable receiving options, so Miller could add another dynamic in the passing game.
Not to be confused for former Pro Bowler Zach Miller, who spent time with the Raiders and Seahawks, this Zach Miller had an improbable comeback to the NFL in 2015 after not having appeared in a game since the 2011 season due to various injuries. The former sixth-round pick, who came into the season having recorded 45 career receptions, set new career highs by grabbing 34 balls for 439 yards and five touchdowns in 2015.
The 31-year-old Miller isn’t a great run-blocker, though, and neither is Kendricks, and with the Rams set up to field a run-based offense led by Todd Gurley, Los Angeles might look to find a tight end who could be an asset in that part of the game, especially given that its offensive line ranked in the bottom-third of the league in adjusted line yards in 2015. Cook, for all his faults, was a top-15 run-blocking tight end last season, per Pro Football Focus.
Earlier this offseason, Miller was said to be seeking $5MM annually, and while that figure may seem high, it could be a bit more palatable now that Dwayne Allen, for example, was able to score $7MM per year. Miller is the best tight end remaining on the free agent market, as Antonio Gates, Coby Fleener, Allen, and Ladarius Green have all signed new contracts.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
North Notes: Wallace, Hicks, Bryant, Vikings
Even after being released by the Vikings earlier this week, Mike Wallace still might return to Minnesota, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link), who says that the possibility of Wallace re-signing with the Vikings is “on the table.” Wallace hasn’t been the same player since leaving the Steelers after 2012, as he’s averaged just 755 yards and six touchdowns with the Dolphins and Vikings in the three years since. But he’s not yet 30 years old, and given the crop of free agent wideouts, he should be able to find a nice landing spot.
Wallace was set to count $11.5MM against the cap in 2016, so if Minnesota does want to re-sign him, it will obviously be for far less than that total. The Ravens will reportedly have Wallace in for a visit, and while it’s just my speculation, I wonder if the Steelers would be interested in a reunion given that Martavis Bryant is facing a yearlong suspension.
Let’s take a look at some more notes from the NFL’s two North divisions…
- Free agent defensive lineman Akiem Hicks is in Chicago deciding his next move, and no resolution is expected to be announced today, reports Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). The Bears are still in the hunt for Hicks, per Finley, while the Lions have also expressed interest.
- The Steelers have known about Bryant’s suspension since before the combine, tweets Albert Breer of NFL.com, so today’s news didn’t come as a major surprise.
- Two Vikings‘ linebackers — Travis Lewis and Audie Cole — received one-year, minimum salary benefit deals, according to Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com and Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter links). Lewis received a $50K signing bonus, per Rothstein, while Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reported (via Twitter) a few days ago that Cole received a $40K bonus.
Miller’s Latest: Glennon, Hackenberg, Doctson
While the Buccaneers have floated the idea of acquiring a first-round pick for quarterback Mike Glennon, Matt Miller of Bleacher Report hears the Tampa Bay would accept a third-rounder if it were from a team picking relatively high. That conflicts with a recent report by Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com which said the Bucs turned down a second-round pick for its backup quarterback. Of course, La Canfora’s report didn’t given any sense of a timetable, so Tampa’s view of Glennon’s market could have changed since it rejected a second-rounder. Glennon is generating the most trade interest of any signal-caller outside of Colin Kaepernick, per Miller.
Here’s more from Miller’s latest column, with a heavy focus on the NFL draft…
- Some around the NFL don’t expect Penn State’s Christian Hackenberg to have any chance at being a first-round pick now that the Texans have signed Brock Osweiler, according to Miller. Houston head coach Bill O’Brien tutored Hackenberg at Penn State, but now Hackenberg looks to be a second- or third-round pick.
- Instead of focusing on quarterback, the Texans could now look to find help at either wide receiver or defensive tackle early in the draft, the clubs’ scouts told Miller.
- Ole Miss defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche‘s character concerns have caused some teams to take him off their draft boards, and one NFC West general manager sounds like he’s employed by one of them. “Take Nkemdiche out of your mock drafts,” the GM said, per Miller. “No one is that stupid.”
- After releasing Mike Wallace earlier this week, the Vikings are expected to target receivers early in the draft, and one player to keep an eye on could be Josh Doctson of TCU, per Miller, as a team source tells the Bleacher Report scribe that Minnesota has a high grade on Horned Frog pass-catcher.
- Linebacker Reggie Ragland struggled during his Pro Day, and could now possibly fall to the second round. One scout told Miller that the Alabama product looked “slow, sluggish, and heavy” during his workout.
- Another Alabama defender — defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson — is viewed as a two-down run-stopper, and therefore might fall out of the first round.
- Oklahoma cornerback Zack Sanchez is earning good reports from NFL scouts, says Miller, and he’s moved up enough draft boards that he could now be a late first-round pick.
- Some teams are wary of running back Devontae Booker because the Utah product has undergone two surgeries to clean up a torn meniscus.