Patriots To Sign Brandon Gibson
The Patriots have bigger fish to fry as they look to retain Darrelle Revis, but they’ve made a smaller move today, signing receiver Brandon Gibson to a one-year deal worth $825K, per Field Yates of ESPN (Twitter link). Gibson was released by the division rival Dolphins last month.
In New England, he’ll join Julian Edelman, Brandon LaFell, and Danny Amendola in catching passes from Tom Brady. As Gibson is primarily a slot receiver, however, his signing could be a sign that the Pats are considering releasing Amendola, a move that would create $4.5MM if he were designated as a post June-1 cut. That cap room could be valuable as the Patriots attempt to re-sign Revis.
A former Ram, Gibson joined the Dolphins prior to the 2013 season, and put up nearly identical numbers in his first two seasons with the club. Of course, in 2013, when he grabbed 30 balls for 326 yards and three touchdowns, he did so in just seven games. In 2014, he totaled 29 receptions for 295 yards and a TD in 14 contests.
Gibson earned more than $3.2MM in base salary last season, so he’ll take a significant pay cut to join the Super Bowl champs.
Nick Fairley to Visit Bengals
After the Lions acquired Haloti Ngata earlier today, there might not be a spot left in Detroit for free agent defensive tackle Nick Fairley. Instead, Fairley will meet with the Bengals, a team that could use help along the defensive line, reports Josina Anderson of ESPN (Twitter link). The visit will take place on Tuesday, per Anderson.
The Bengals have been typically quiet thus far in free agency, signing only linebacker A.J. Hawk to a two-year deal. However, as they finished last in the league with only 20 sacks last season, the club was expected to target pass-rushing help during the FA period. Cincinnati could still look for an outside rusher, but Fairley is extremely adept at creating disruption from his spot at the interior of line. He’d team with former All-Pro Geno Atkins if signed.
Nearly every defensive tackle on Detroit’s roster was set to become a free agent, so there would certainly be space on the team for Fairley. But Ngata’s $8.5MM base salary will eat up quite a bit of cap space, so after losing Ndamukong Suh, the Lions might look to bring back C.J. Mosley or another cheaper option to pair with Ngata.
Fairley, 27, ranked 27th on PFR’s Top 50 free agent list.
North Notes: Revis, Ngata, Steelers, Packers
The Steelers looked into signing Darrelle Revis, but it doesn’t look like it’s possible, per Adam Schefter of ESPN (Twitter link), who says that it’s down to the Jets and Patriots for the star corner. Revis was asking for more money than Pittsburgh could afford, tweets Aditi Kinkhabwala of the NFL Network.
Meanwhile, the Packers have emerged as a suitor for Revis, adds Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (via Twitter), who lists the Jets, Pats, Packers, and a mystery team as the finalists for Revis.
Here’s more from the North divisions:
- The Lions are expected to approach the recently-acquired Haloti Ngata about an extension, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Ngata is entering the final year of his contract.
- The Packers had a “few discussions” with free agent defensive tackle Terrance Knighton, per Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Twitter link), but a deal isn’t likely. Green Bay has had discussions about retaining Letroy Guion and B.J. Raji, but the club could wait out the DT market.
- Looking to retain one of the core special teams players, the Bears have interest in re-signing cornerback Sherrick McManis, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, though nothing is yet in the works.
NFL Investigating Pre-FA Deals
The NFL has sent a memo to all 32 clubs instructing them to hold on to their phone records, indicating that the league will investigate any tampering that occurred during the three-day tampering window, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN (Twitter link).
Clubs were allowed to use Saturday through Monday to negotiate with player agents, but no deals were supposed to have been agreed to until today. Of course, given the flurry of news of pending deals that broke over the weekend, teams obviously didn’t adhere to that rule. Clubs have ignored those guidelines in years past, but the amount of big-name free agents who reportedly agreed to contracts over the weekend was particularly egregious.
We heard yesterday that the league had sent out a similar memo, voicing its displeasure with the amount of contact between teams and players. Today’s second memo indicates that perhaps the NFL could look to actually penalize teams who were found to have acted outside the spirit of the law.
Raiders Notes: Murray, Knighton, Williams
The latest out of Oakland…
- The Raiders are in on running back DeMarco Murray, according to John Middlekauf of 95.7 The Game (Twitter link).
- Despite reports that the two sides were nearing a deal, Oakland is no longer pursuing Terrance Knighton, tweets Dianna Marie Russini of NBC 4, who adds (via Twitter) that the Broncos are also out on Knighton.
- Oakland’s interest in Knighton had waned, per ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson (via Twitter), who says the club is now focused on Dan Williams.
Extra Points: Hartline, Murray, Browner, Bush
The latest from around the league…
- Brian Hartline‘s decision ultimately came down to the Browns and the Patriots, the receiver tells Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon-Journal (Twitter link). Hartline ended up signing a two-year pact with Cleveland yesterday.
- Cowboys owner Jerry Jones says the club wants to re-sign DeMarco Murray, emphasizing that Dallas is still in negotiations with its free agent running back (Twitter links via Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram).
- The Panthers don’t seem to be showing much interest in edge rusher Derrick Morgan, tweets Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer.
- The Titans have interest in cornerback Brandon Browner, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (via Twitter). Browner isn’t expected to take a pay cut to remain in New England. Browner is receiving a lot of interest around the league, but he could still return to the Patriots, per Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (Twitter link).
- Jahri Evans is still a candidate for release in New Orleans, and if the Saints do cut him, expect the Bills to be in on the veteran guard, says Mike Rodak of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
- Most observers expected free agent receiver Michael Crabtree to depart San Francisco, but the 49ers do have interest in re-signing him, according to Dianna Marie Russini of NBC 4 (via Twitter).
- Having been cut by the Lions earlier in the offseason, running back Reggie Bush is considering a return to the Saints, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. According to Rapoport, the Patriots and Eagles are among the other teams in play for Bush.
Orlando Franklin To Sign With Chargers
TUESDAY, 3:37pm: It will be a five-year deal for Franklin, according to Michael Gehlken of U-T San Diego (via Twitter).
MONDAY, 6:47am: Franklin has told people that he’ll leave the Broncos and sign a five-year deal with the Chargers, sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter links). When it gets finalized, Franklin’s deal will come in at close to $36.5MM, with $20MM guaranteed, says Schefter.
SUNDAY, 11:20pm: According to Mike Klis of the Denver Post (Twitter link), the deal Franklin is expected to sign with the Chargers is worth $7.2MM per year, with $14MM in guaranteed money. Based on those figures, it sounds like it’ll be a four- or five-year pact.
4:36pm: A deal between free agent offensive lineman Orlando Franklin and the Chargers is “unofficially done,” a source tells Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). If correct, the contract would presumably be finalized on Tuesday when the new league year begins.
The 27-year-old Franklin has spent the first four years of his career with the Broncos, playing right tackle from 2011-13 before moving to left guard last season. With D.J. Fluker manning the right side in San Diego, Franklin would stay at guard, replacing either Chad Rinehart or Johnnie Troutman, both of whom struggled mightily in ’14, at either left or right guard. Franklin excelled in his positional transition, finishing as the league’s 13th-best guard according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
The Chargers have already made one move to solidify their offensive line in recent weeks, agreeing to a four-year extension with left tackle King Dunlap. Adding Franklin, PFR’s No. 25 free agent, would only improve the line even more. San Diego could probably use more help at guard, however, and center could also be upgraded, though Chris Watt was serviceable in limited playing time last year.
Keenan Lewis Wants Guarantee Or Release
If the Saints aren’t willing to guarantee the remaining three years of his contract, cornerback Keenan Lewis wants the club to release him, tweets Mike Triplett of ESPN.com. Per Triplett (Twitter link), Lewis is unhappy with the “team being broken apart,” apparently referencing the trade of Jimmy Graham earlier today.
The 28-year-old Lewis has three years left on his deal, with base salaries totaling $10.8MM. He’s a good player, but I’m sure not the Saints would be willing to guarantee the remaining years. It would probably set a poor precedent to allow a player to demand that his contract be tweaked because he doesn’t approve of the moves of the club.
Lewis, signed over from the Steelers two years ago, has started 16 games in each of the past two seasons, posting six interceptions.
Dan Williams Has Deal In Place
Free agent defensive tackle Dan Williams has an agreed to sign with a unknown club, according to Aaron Leming of BearReport.com (Twitter link). Per Leming, William has informed the Bears that he will be signing elsewhere.
Williams has been linked to the Raiders, Washington, Lions, and Giants, but the latter club is reportedly no longer in the mix for him. The 27-year-old Williams, who ranked as the No. 33 free agent on PFR’s Top 50 list, has started 40 games in his five-year career, all with the Cardinals, who selected him in the first round of the 2010 draft.
Williams has spent the majority of his career as a nose tackle, so Washington, which plays a 3-4 defense, makes sense as a possible destination. The Lions, however, are looking to replace Ndamukong Suh, and Williams is capable of playing in a 4-3, so Detroit isn’t out of the question, either. Williams is expected to garner between $5-6MM per year. With Suh, Jared Odrick, Terrance Knighton, and Stephen Paea all nearing deals with other clubs, Williams and Nick Fairley sit atop the available crop of free agent interior lineman.
Extra Points: Hoyer, Hardy, Morgan, Williams
As we learned earlier today, the Jets aren’t giving up on Brian Hoyer despite reports of the quarterback agreeing to a deal with the Texans. Per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the Jets spoke with Hoyer’s agent twice Monday, and were set to do so again Monday night.
Here’s more from around the league as on free agency eve…
- Disputing an earlier report, the Falcons told D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that they have no interest in free agent defensive end Greg Hardy.
- The Buccaneers have been “kicking the tires” on edge rusher Derrick Morgan, but it’s unclear if they’ll actually present him with an offer, according to Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (via Twitter).
- Defensive tackle Dan Williams could be a target for the Raiders, tweets Adam Caplan of ESPN. Williams’ time in Arizona might be up following their signing of Corey Peters earlier tonight.
- The Titans are in on edge rusher Brian Orakpo, who has drawn interest from numerous teams, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (via Twitter).
- Vince Young was not accepted to and won’t attend the NFL Veterans Combine on March 22 in Phoenix, a representative for the quarterback tells Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). Smith hears that Young was not “invited” by the NFL and entered late (link). He could wind up as a last-minute addition but as of right now, he won’t be there.
Zach Links contributed to this post.