49ers Release Stevie Johnson
WEDNESDAY, 6:13pm: Johnson has officially been released by the 49ers, according to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com (via Twitter).
7:13am: With Smith’s deal set to become official on Wednesday, the 49ers will release Johnson today, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who says the two sides weren’t able to work out an agreement on a pay cut (Twitter link).
TUESDAY, 7:21pm: Johnson remains on the 49ers’ roster, but there are ongoing discussions about reducing or restructuring the backup wideout’s deal, the Sacramento Bee’s Matt Barrows reports on Twitter.
MONDAY, 5:11pm: With a deal between the 49ers and Torrey Smith reportedly in the works, San Francisco will release fellow wide receiver Stevie Johnson, according to Dianna Marie Russini of NBC 4 (Twitter link). The release of Johnson will leave no dead money on San Francisco’s cap and will save the club more than $6MM.
The 49ers acquired the 28-year-old Johnson from the Bills in exchange for a conditional draft pick prior to last season. He wasn’t a focal point of the club’s offense, but he did catch 35 passes for 435 yards and three touchdowns in 13 games. San Francisco is expected to overhaul its receiving corps this offseason, and with Smith rumored to be added soon, Michael Crabtree will probably join Johnson in vacating the Bay Area.
Johnson, meanwhile, will join a rapidly thinning free agent receiver market. With the two top options — Demaryius Thomas and Dez Bryant — seeing the franchise tag, and the next best pass-catchers — Randall Cobb and Jeremy Maclin — already finding new deals, Johnson will be among a list of still unsigned WRs that includes Andre Johnson, Cecil Shorts, and the aforementioned Crabtree. Per Russini, Johnson is expected to land with another team “quickly.”
Raiders Sign Roy Helu
WEDNESDAY, 6:08pm: The Raiders (on Twitter) announced that Helu’s deal has been signed.
TUESDAY, 8:01pm: Although they’ve been tied to DeMarco Murray throughout the day, the Raiders have added a lower-profile running back, agreeing to terms with Roy Helu, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN. It’s a two-year, $4MM pact, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN (Twitter link).
The 26-year-old Helu rushed for only 216 yards in Washington last year, but was a focal point of the club’s passing attack, catching 42 balls for nearly 500 yards. He drew interest from several teams around the league, many of whom presumably wanted him to a fill their third-down back role. The Patriots and Jets both pursued Helu, as did the Giants before signing Shane Vereen.
In Oakland, Helu will be offered the chance to play 20 minutes from his home, as Zac Boyer of the Washington Times notes (via Twitter). With Maurice Jones-Drew having announced his retirement, the Raiders will count on Helu and Latavius Murray to round out their running back position. I’d guess Murray will act as the starter with Helu in his familiar passing-down role, but maybe Helu was offered a larger share of playing time in Oakland.
Helu earned a base salary of $1.431MM in 2014, so his new deal will indicate a pay bump of more than $500K.
Raiders Sign Lee Smith
WEDNESDAY, 4:36pm: The Raiders officially announced (via Twitter) the signing of Smith. Smith will get $3.1MM guaranteed in the deal, Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun tweets.
TUESDAY, 3:47pm: The Raiders have agreed to terms with free agent tight end Lee Smith, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN (Twitter link). It’s a three-year, $9MM pact, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN. The 27-year-old blocking specialist has the spent the entirety of his four-year career with Buffalo.
Per Schefter, Oakland will also visit with tight end Jermaine Gresham today. Vic Tafur of the Oakland Tribune adds more (via Twitter), saying that while nothing is yet official, most expect the Raiders to sign Gresham and defensive tackle Terrance Knighton today. Knighton was said to be close to a deal with Oakland earlier today, though the Colts are also in the running.
The Raiders will host several other free agents, including defensive tackle Dan Williams and linebacker Curtis Lofton, today, tweets John Middlekauf of 95.7 The Game. Oakland could be choosing between Williams and Knighton, per Tafur (Twitter link).
Jets Sign Buster Skrine
WEDNESDAY, 4:15pm: The Jets’ signing of Skrine is now official, the team confirmed in a press release.
TUESDAY, 3:14pm: In dire need of secondary help, the Jets have agreed to sign free agent cornerback Buster Skrine, according to Adam Schefter and Adam Caplan of ESPN (Twitter link). It’s a four-year, $25MM deal, with $13MM guaranteed, per Bob Glauber of Newday (Twitter link). The 25-year-old Skrine spent the first four years of his career with the Browns.
We heard earlier today that there was mutual interest between Gang Green and Skrine. Skrine, who turns 26 next month held onto his starting job in Cleveland during the 2014 season, and only one other cornerback in the NFL played more snaps than Skrine’s 1,152 (Williams, with 1,198). With quarterbacks avoiding Joe Haden, Skrine also saw the second-most targets in the NFL (123), and held QBs to a 56.9% completion percentage.
The Jets are expected to add more help to their defensive backfield, with Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie atop their wishlist.
Bengals Re-Sign Clint Boling
1:53pm: Boling’s new deal with the Bengals is now official, the team confirmed today (via Twitter).
WEDNESDAY, 9:51am: It’s a five-year, $26MM deal for Boling, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter). That’s not a bad deal for the Bengals, considering other top free agent interior linemen, like Mike Iupati and Rodney Hudson, received $8MM+ annual salaries.
TUESDAY, 9:07pm: Boling is returning to the Bengals, as the two sides have worked out a deal, per the NFL Network’s Aditi Kinkhabwala (Twitter link).
7:26pm: The Bengals are nearing a deal to retain guard Clint Boling, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com (Twitter link). The 26-year-old Boling had been drawing interest from other clubs, but it looks like he’ll head back to Cincinnati. Terms of the deal aren’t yet known.
The Vikings had expressed an interest in adding Boling, which would have reunited the Georgia alum with former Bengals coach Mike Zimmer. Boling’s trainer had indicated that although the Jets and Falcons were also pursuing the former fourth-round pick, Boling had the strongest interest in joining Minnesota. Instead, he’ll stay in Cincinnati, where’s started 44 games over the past three seasons.
Boling, who ranked at No. 44 among PFR’s Top 50 free agents, was especially excellent in 2014, grading as the league’s eighth-best guard per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). He earned a base salary of $1.431MM last year, meaning he’ll be in for a large pay increase on his new contract.
Lions Acquire Haloti Ngata
WEDNESDAY, 1:49pm: Ngata has passed his physical and is officially a Lion, says Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com (Twitter link).
TUESDAY, 3:36pm: Detroit will receive Ngata and a seventh-round pick while sending a fourth- and fifth-round pick to Baltimore, per Schefter (Twitter link).
2:55pm: The Lions have acquired defensive tackle Haloti Ngata from the Ravens, Baltimore announced via Twitter. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun was the first to report the news (Twitter link). Detroit is expected to send a fourth- or fifth- round pick to the Ravens, tweets Peter King of Sports Illustrated.
Baltimore has expressed optimism that it would be able to retain the 31-year-old Ngata via some sort of contract restructure involving either an extension or a pay reduction. He had been scheduled to carry a $16MM cap charge for 2015. Now that they’ve traded him, the Ravens will only be responsible for his prorated bonus money, which comes to $7.5MM.
In landing Ngata, the Lions have found their replacement for departed free agent Ndamukong Suh, who agreed to terms with the Dolphins over the weekend. Ngata is also reuniting with Teryl Austin, Detroit’s defensive coordinator, who previously coached in Baltimore. The Lions will assume Ngata’s base salary of $8.5MM for the upcoming season. The nine-year veteran has started 133 games in his career, accruing 25.5 sacks.
Former Lions defensive tackle Nick Fairley is now a free agent, and it will interesting to see if Detroit’s move for Ngata will impact their pursuit of him.
Bills Sign Jerome Felton
WEDNESDAY, 12:57pm: Despite GM Doug Whaley suggesting earlier today that the Bills didn’t have an agreement in place with Felton, the fullback has now signed his contract with the team, tweets Tim Graham of the Buffalo News. It’s a four-year deal worth $9.2MM, with $4MM guaranteed, says Carucci (via Twitter).
TUESDAY, 3:56pm: After acquiring LeSean McCoy last week, the Bills have found him a lead-blocker, agreeing to terms with fullback Jerome Felton, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). It’s expected to be a four-year pact worth $2.3MM annually, tweets Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News.
The 28-year-old Felton opted out his contract with the Vikings last month, reportedly unhappy his role on the team. He should more pleased in Buffalo, where Rex Ryan and offensive coordinator Greg Roman are expected to install a power-running game with McCoy and veteran Fred Jackson.
Felton acted as the lead blocker for Adrian Peterson‘s 2012 MVP campaign, paving the way for Peterson to nearly break the all-time rushing record — Felton himself went to the Pro Bowl that season, and was named second-team All Pro.
Cardinals Sign Corey Peters
WEDNESDAY, 11:42am: The Cardinals have officially announced their three-year deal for Peters, per Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com (Twitter link).
MONDAY, 9:58pm: Adding their second former Falcon in the past 24 hours, the Cardinals are expected to sign defensive tackle Corey Peters, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (Twitter link). While Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports tweets that it’s a three-year $9MM deal, McClure says (via Twitter) Peters will average close to $3.5MM per year. We’ll probably learn more specifics once the contract is finalized tomorrow, but Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun adds (Twitter link) that more than half of Peters’ deal is guaranteed.
The 26-year-old Peters will join ex-Atlanta teammate Sean Weatherspoon in Arizona, with the latter having agreed to a one-year pact with the Cards earlier today. Peters didn’t draw a ton of known interest, but the Dolphins were thought to be intrigued, and the Falcons were interested in retaining him. Ultimately, he’ll head to the desert, where his signing could mean the end of free agent Dan Williams‘ tenure in Arizona.
Peters, a former third-round pick, had spent the entirety of his career with the Falcons, starting 55 games in five seasons.
Jaguars Sign Dan Skuta
WEDNESDAY, 10:35am: In what has been a busy morning for the team, Skuta’s signing is the latest to be confirmed by the Jaguars (via Twitter).
MONDAY, 10:51pm: Skuta’s deal is for $20.5MM over five years, according to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.
9:31pm: The defection of 49ers defensive players will continue, as Adam Caplan of ESPN reports (via Twitter) that linebacker Dan Skuta will sign with the Jaguars when the free agent period begins tomorrow. We first heard of Jacksonville’s interest in Skuta earlier today, including that he’d have an expanded role on the Jags’ defense.
Skuta, 29 next month, also drew interest from the Dolphins and Eagles, the latter of whom would have a “ton of interest” in signing him had they not retained Brandon Graham, tweets Caplan. A key contributor on special teams, Skuta also saw more than 300 snaps at outside linebacker for San Francisco, racking up five sacks. He spent four seasons with the Bengals before joining the Niners in 2013.
The Jaguars have been incredibly active through the three-day negotiating window, agreeing to terms with tight end Julius Thomas, defensive tackle Jared Odrick, and offensive tackle Jermey Parnell.
Jaguars Sign Julius Thomas
WEDNESDAY: The Jaguars have officially signed Thomas, the team announced today in a press release.
TUESDAY: Thomas will make an average of $9.2MM over five years with the Jags, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). His contract includes $24MM in guaranteed money.
MONDAY: Thomas will be heading to the Jaguars, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link), who notes that the Broncos, Raiders, and Seahawks all made a “hard push” to sign the tight end. Multiple reports have indicated that Thomas will earn roughly $9MM per year.
SUNDAY: The Jaguars have the most cap space of any team in the league, and it appears that they’ll be spending some of it by adding a playmaker to their offense. Two sources tell Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (Twitter link) that a deal between Jacksonville and free agent tight end Julius Thomas is “just about done” — of course, no contract can become official until the new league year begins on Tuesday.
The 26-year-old Thomas was widely expected to leave Denver and test the free agent market, and once the Broncos placed the franchise tag on Demaryius Thomas, it seemed that the tight end’s time in the Mile High City was coming to a close. Julius Thomas, a 2011 draftee, broke out during his third season in Denver, emerging as a key target for Peyton Manning in 2013. His reception and yards totals both decreased last season as he dealt with injuries (ultimately missing six games), but he still finished with 12 touchdowns.
The No. 4 free agent on PFR’s Top 50 list, Thomas was also expected to draw interest from the Seahawks, but it looks like he’ll head to Jacksonville instead, where he’ll team with second-year quarterback Blake Bortles. The Jaguars, with nearly $70MM in cap space, are expected to be active during free agency, and could pursue upgrades at running back, receiver, offensive line, and pass-rusher.
The free agent tight end market, already somewhat barren, takes a hit with the loss of Thomas — with Charles Clay having been slapped with the transition tag by the Dolphins, and Niles Paul re-signing with Washington, Jordan Cameron is now the clear top TE available. Cameron now figures to command more dollars, and other options like Jermaine Gresham and Owen Daniels could draw more interest.
The Broncos, meanwhile, will need to replace Thomas at tight end. Daniels has been linked to Denver, as has free agent James Casey — both have a familiarity with new Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak’s scheme.