Minor NFL Transactions: 3/1/24
The only minor move in a day full of bigger transactions:
New England Patriots
- Re-signed: QB Nathan Rourke
The former CFL standout passer will remain in New England after being claimed off waivers from Jacksonville late last season. Rourke has been a hot name of interest in the years following his Canadian success, meeting with 13 teams since that time. Despite time with the Jaguars and Patriots, Rourke has not yet made his NFL debut. He appears to be a part of New England’s plans at quarterback moving forward.
RBs A Priority For Ravens In Offseason
We noted something similar back in February, but the Ravens have made it clear lately that additions to the running backs group will be a priority in the offseason. Whether that comes through re-signing expiring deals, signing veteran free agents, or pursuing a rookie prospect, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic’s quote from general manager Eric DeCosta says it best: (they) need more than two running backs. 
The Ravens have lots of work to do in the coming weeks with expiring contracts all over their 2023 roster, but DeCosta is fully aware of which potential departures leave them most bare. Both former undrafted veteran Gus Edwards and former second-round pick J.K. Dobbins are set to hit free agency this spring, as will late-season addition Dalvin Cook and practice squad backs Melvin Gordon and Owen Wright, though Wright, an undrafted rookie, has signed a futures deal with the team. That leaves only Justice Hill and another undrafted rookie in Keaton Mitchell as the only two running backs with in-game experience on the roster moving forward.
Hill signed a two-year deal a year ago and will now play out the final season of that contract. He had the best season of his career in 2023 but has still failed to surpass 400 rushing yards or 4 touchdowns in a season. He expanded his role this year by adding 206 receiving yards. Mitchell was a pleasant surprise as a rookie, touting an outstanding 8.43 yards per carry average in eight games played. The diminutive back flashed elite speed and play-making ability when healthy, but a torn ACL midway through December leaves the team without their explosive second-year player for likely the entire offseason.
In our previous discussion on the subject, we laid out the cases for Dobbins and Edwards. Dobbins showed incredible upside as a rookie but has since struggled mightily to stay on the field. Edwards had been a reliable short-yardage and goal-line back in the early days of Jackson’s career, backing up Mark Ingram before teaming up with Dobbins and Hill. The big-bodied back with the nickname “Gus the Bus” has six years under his belt but showed no signs of slowing with a career-high 990 scrimmage yards and 13 rushing touchdowns this season. At the NFL scouting combine DeCosta made it known that the organization has not shut the door on the idea of bringing the two back. In fact, DeCosta claimed the team was “hopeful (they) can get something done with those guys,” per Ravens staff writers Clifton Brown and Ryan Mink.
We also explored the idea of free agency in our previous post. There are a number of big names hitting the open market this offseason, and Baltimore has already been connected to a few. Titans bell-cow Derrick Henry has been linked to the team since the days of the trade deadline. Other notable names like the Giants’ Saquon Barkley, the Raiders’ Josh Jacobs, and the Cowboys’ Tony Pollard have been mentioned, as well.
In the draft, there a couple intriguing names to look at like Michigan rusher Blake Corum or Texas running back Jonathon Brooks, but Wisconsin’s Braelon Allen is a name that has been making the rounds in Baltimore. If the team fails to sign any of the above veterans, expect the Ravens to pursue one of these players early in the draft. If a big name puts pen to paper, though, Baltimore will likely be content to take a late-round addition or even peruse the undrafted dregs once again.
Regardless, additions are going to be necessary in 2024. Especially with Mitchell coming back from a serious injury, the team can’t well expect to find success with only him, Hill, and Wright heading into the 2024 NFL season. Whether they bring back Edwards or Dobbins, sign a big-name in free agency like Henry or Barkley, or draft a high-end prospect, somebody will have to join the three currently in the running backs room.
Dak Prescott Extension Coming In Spring?
At this point, it’s become fully clear that both the Cowboys and the quarterback Dak Prescott are intent on further extending their time together. With that expectation fully established, we can turn our attention to what that could look like and when that could occur. 
The Cowboys have no intention of letting Prescott leave Dallas. The Cowboys are likely also not too excited about the $59.4MM hit to the team’s salary cap that Prescott is posed to deliver in 2024, the second-highest figure in the league. Those two motivators are sure to steer Dallas in the direction of an extension and soon. This week is known as an opportunity for agents to get together with team officials at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis to broach such topics.
Obviously, no one is expecting a deal to get done in the next few days, though. Prescott is due a $5MM roster bonus on his current contract come March 18, but the Cowboys are likely more than willing to sacrifice that for a bit more time to craft a new extension. Still, Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News claims that the team has every intention “of extending Prescott at some point this spring.” So whatever discussions are being had in the infamous Cowboys team bus in Indianapolis this week should lay the groundwork to get a new deal done relatively soon.
Prescott’s previous four-year, $160MM extension back in 2021 was massive at the time, but nowadays, the deal pales in comparison to the most recent contracts we’ve seen going to passers that are starting to inch towards $60MM per year. Currently, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow holds the league’s highest annual average value at $55MM. Yes, Burrow has led his team to a berth in the Super Bowl to earn that figure, but Chargers passer Justin Herbert is making $52.5MM per year with a regular season record of 30-32 and a loss in his single playoff appearance.
In comparison, Prescott has led the Cowboys to a 74-41 regular season record and five playoff appearances. People will draw attention to the 30-year-old’s 2-5 playoff record and the team’s inability to advance past the Divisional Round, but other quarterbacks have cashed in more with less. Also, despite the lack of playoff success, in 2023, Prescott led his team to their best record since his rookie year and led the league in completions and passing touchdowns. The expectation is that Prescott will once again set the mark for quarterbacks.
With how things are trending, a $60MM per year deal doesn’t seem out of reach. It’s simply the direction things continue to go towards. Yes, the Cowboys have other stars like Micah Parsons and CeeDee Lamb who will need new deals in the next two years, as well, but unless a team is willing to go back to a rookie contract and start from scratch, they will need to pay their quarterback. The higher-than-expected increase to the league’s salary cap this year makes $60MM a bit more palatable, and future rises to future salary caps make deals with Parsons and Lamb seem doable, as well. Not to mention that a new deal would result in a lower cap hit in 2024 for Prescott, freeing the Cowboys up to make some other moves to improve the team this offseason.
So, we expect conversations to be taking place this week to set the stage for a Prescott extension sometime this spring. And we expect that extension to once again move the bar for paying quarterbacks in the NFL. At this point, it all seems like a matter of time and details.
Panthers Have Discussed Extending DT Derrick Brown
Panthers defensive tackle Derrick Brown took a couple of seasons to find his game in the NFL but showed enough in Year 3 to warrant the pickup of the fifth-year option of his rookie contract. A year later, and a second stellar season under his belt, Brown could be headed towards a new contract extension before he even gets the chance to play on that option. 
After selecting Brown seventh overall out of Auburn in 2020, Carolina held high expectations for its new starting defensive tackle. Brown delivered on expectations that he would be disruptive, racking up eight tackles for loss in each of his first two season. He also showed a talented pass rushing ability, tallying five sacks and 21 quarterback hits in those first two years. He came under fire early in his career, though, for his struggles in run defense and tackling.
Brown’s third year in the league saw tremendous improvement. While he still had his struggles tackling, he heavily improved his run defense, helping him go from the 37th-best interior defender in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), to the seventh-best. In 2023, Brown put any questions of his tackling issues to rest. Not only did he lead the league in tackles made by a defensive tackle, but Brown also set the NFL record for total tackles in a single season by an interior defender with an astounding 103.
The man was a singular vacuum in the middle of the Panthers defense, and as a result, once again improved his standing, grading out as the fourth-best interior defender in the NFL this season, per PFF, trailing only Dexter Lawrence, Aaron Donald, and Quinnen Williams, three of the league’s highest-paid defensive tackles. Whenever extension talks occur, Brown and his representation, Drew Rosenhaus, will be sure to point out that all three of the above-mentioned players are making over $20MM per year.
Those extension talks do seem to be close at hand, according to Joe Person of The Athletic, who reports that the Panthers general manager Dan Morgan has been in touch with Rosenhaus. The team exercised the 25-year-old’s fifth-year option, allowing them ample time to work out a potential extension agreement. They even lucked out, as the lack of a Pro Bowl season up to that point only qualified Brown for the third tier of the fifth-year option structure, putting his fifth-year, fully-guaranteed salary at a rather manageable $11.67MM. Brown ended up finally earning that Pro Bowl honor this year.
Unfortunately, his Pro Bowl season came one year late. The Panthers may still pursue an extension, though, attempting to lock down Brown on a long-term, potentially team-friendly deal while avoiding any potential for a holdout. His fifth-year salary is set to be about half of what the annual average value would be on a new deal, but it’s all fully guaranteed and all hitting the salary cap. An extension could help lower that cap hit and potentially reward Brown with more guaranteed money in a different structure.
Carolina has some free agents to deal with this offseason like linebacker Frankie Luvu and star pass rusher Brian Burns, so more pressing matters may be at the top of the docket right now. Still, Brown is turning into one of the league’s best at his position, turning even his early-career weaknesses into strengths as he prepares to enter a contract year. Extending him before that point should be an offseason priority.
Minor NFL Transactions: 2/28/24
Today’s only minor NFL transaction:
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Waived from reserve/retired list: TE Sammis Reyes
Formerly a basketball player with aspirations of an NBA career, Reyes chose to go the football route through the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program coming out of Chile. Having only appeared in a regular season game during his time in Washington, Reyes made an early retirement announcement after just two years with three different teams. Healthy again and with his rights now waived, Reyes is reportedly free to pursue opportunities with any interested teams.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 2/28/24
Decisions were made for three exclusive rights free agents today:
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Bengals: LS Cal Adomitis, QB Jake Browning
Non-tendered:
- Lions: CB Khalil Dorsey
Cincinnati made the call to hold on to their starting long snapper of the past two seasons, as well as their backup quarterback. An undrafted free agent out of Washington back in 2019, Browning finally made his NFL debut this year, getting significant run due to a season-ending injury to starter Joe Burrow. In seven starts as Burrow’s replacement, Browning led the league with a 70.4 completion percentage, throwing 12 touchdowns to seven interceptions while averaging just over 215 passing yards per game. The team won four of the seven games in which Browning started. As tendered exclusive rights free agents, Adomitis and Browning will have the option to either sign the tender offer or work towards a long-term deal.
Dorsey, on the other hand, will head to the free agent market after Detroit opted not to pick him back up. A depth cornerback, Dorsey started two games for the Lions this year but had a bigger impact on special teams, where he served as the team’s top kickoff return man.
Caleb Williams Will Not Throw At Combine
The importance of the NFL Scouting Combine continues to be called into question two years after stringent COVID-19 rules nearly caused a mass boycott of the event in 2022. The topic of the boycott brought attention to how important the combine is for late-round, fringe, and small school prospects while potentially serving as a negative for some of college football’s best. Those debates may crop up again with recent news that USC quarterback Caleb Williams plans not to throw at next week’s combine, according to Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report. 
To clarify, Williams still plans on attending the event in Indianapolis, according to Ian Rapoport. He’ll be available to interview with any interested teams. It’s unclear if he’ll perform in any of the other workouts of the combine, but we know for sure that he will not throw. Rapoport informs us that Williams’ plan is to wait until his pro day, where he will throw and workout for scouts.
There will be pundits chirping on both sides of the story. Some will support the decision, claiming that he has nothing to gain from throwing at the combine. He’s already expected to be selected at No. 1 overall and plans to throw on March 20 at the Trojan’s pro day. What good can be done by working out twice?
The other side will point to character issues that have persisted in the media throughout his junior year of college. Williams’ mentality and leadership took hits late in the year from the media after the quarterback refused to speak to reporters following what ended up being his final game of college football. Rapoport himself seemed to call out the 22-year-old citing Joe Burrow as an example of how a quarterback should handle his role and responsibilities. His refusal to work out among the other quarterbacks is sure to draw criticism from those who already believe that “off-field concerns” exist for the young passer.
In reality, there are advantages to working at the combine, namely the officiality of the measurements and the additional opportunity to work with NFL coaches. Sure, he will get to perform workouts at his pro day, but the results of timed exercises will be hand-timed. Also, while some coaches will choose to attend USC’s pro day, the combine serves as an additional opportunity to work with NFL staff. Some will look down on Williams’ decision to reject that opportunity.
So, yes, there are advantages, but are they minimal for someone with his current draft stock? That’s difficult to answer. We have certainly seen bad combine performances affect draft stock. Most recently, free agent tight end Isaac Nauta went from first-round prospect to seventh-round pick in 2019. Similarly, Bengals offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr. fell to the third round after what is classically seen as one of the worst combine performances of all time. Still, there are examples of players like Terrell Suggs, who, despite a terrible combine performance, still turned out to be a top-10 pick.
Could Williams be the next to fall victim to the combine? Probably not. He isn’t expected to deliver anywhere near that poor of a performance and, even if he did, his current stock is simply too high to warrant a drastic fall. Still, when he’s already at the top of most prospect rankings, there’s nowhere for him to go but down. It’s hard to blame him for choosing not to take any chances heading into the 2024 NFL Draft.
His announcement has, obviously, caught headlines, though. In the time between the Schultz’s initial report and this one, both Schultz and Rapoport have reported on a number of other prospect’s intentions. So far, South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler, Washington’s Michael Penix Jr., Oregon’s Bo Nix, and Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy have all made it known that they intend to throw next week. Only LSU’s Jayden Daniels has joined Williams in announcing his intentions to wait until his pro day, per Rapoport. The other four passers will have the opportunity to not only work out at the combine in front of NFL coaches but also to do so in direct comparison to their competition, with the lone exceptions (so far) of Williams and Daniels.
Rams Finalize 2024 Coaching Staff
The Rams were one of several teams forced to reconstruct their coaching staff this offseason. While it’s always a challenge to replace staff, the Rams aren’t doing it because they needed to fire anybody, they’re simply replacing coaches who moved on to bigger jobs. Head coach Sean McVay is doing what he’s done year after year, bringing in a new staff that is sure to flourish under his tutelage. 
On offense, we were already aware of the hires of quarterbacks coach Dave Ragone to replace Zac Robinson, senior offensive assistant Jerry Schuplinski, and offensive assistant and pass game specialist Nate Scheelhaase, though the “offensive assistant” part of that title is new information.
In addition, since the departed Robinson had held the title of pass-game coordinator, that moniker has transferred to tight ends coach Nick Caley. Lastly, with offensive assistants K.J. Black and Nick Jones following Robinson and former defensive coordinator Raheem Morris to Atlanta, Los Angeles has brought in former Jets quarterbacks coach Rob Calabrese as a new offensive assistant. Calabrese takes a step back after spending three years in his first NFL position coaching job.
The defensive side of the ball is where the most change will commence, since Morris departed to become the next head coach of the Falcons. We have already reported on Giff Smith‘s replacement of Eric Henderson as defensive line coach and run game coordinator and the hiring of former Eagles defensive coordinator Sean Desai as a senior defensive assistant, as well as the departure of assistant head coach Jimmy Lake, who left to become Morris’ defensive coordinator in Atlanta.
Los Angeles’ update informed us on some pending information for the rest of the defensive staff. First, we had heard that former Packers pass-game coordinator Greg Williams had interviewed for the Rams inside linebackers coaching job, and now we know that he has officially been hired for the role, replacing Chris Shula following his promotion to defensive coordinator. Formerly the secondary coach, Chris Beake‘s official title has been altered to safeties coach, and while assistant defensive line coach AC Carter interviewed for the position that went to Smith after Henderson’s exit, Carter will simply remain in his current role. Additionally, outside linebackers coach Joe Coniglio, defensive backs coach and pass game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant, and defensive assistant Mike Harris have all been retained by Shula in their current roles.
Lastly, on special teams, the Rams hired Chili Davis as assistant special teams coach to replace Jeremy Springer, who departed to become special teams coordinator in New England. Davis will take his first NFL job after coaching for the last 11 years in various college gigs. Most recently, he served as special teams coordinator at Florida A&M in 2022 before going to Manhattan to serve as Kansas State’s special teams quality control coach. Also, on the coaching staff, John Streicher has been brought on board to serve as game management coordinator. Streicher spent the last six seasons in Tennessee, most recently serving as the Titans director of football administration.
There you have it: the 2024 coaching staff for the Rams. McVay is certainly used to shuffling his staff at this point in his career in Los Angeles. He was able to rebound from a rough 2022 season to get back to the playoffs, and with this new staff, he’ll try to get back to the pinnacle of the sport after winning it all in 2021.
Jaguars Make Final Changes To 2024 Staff
The Jaguars were one of several teams that were forced to make adjustments to their coaching staff, most notably after parting ways with defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell and company. The new staff under Caldwell’s successor, former Falcons defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, has been finalized, as have a few updates to the offensive side of the ball, as well. 
On defense we were already aware of the hires of defensive backs coach Kris Richard and inside linebackers coach Matt House, as well as the retention of assistant defensive line coach Rory Segrest, outside linebackers coach Bill Shuey, and defensive quality control coach Patrick Reilly. We had originally reported that Cory Robinson would be joining the staff as the team’s cornerbacks coach, but the team’s update tells us that, more specifically, he will be a defensive assistant and cornerbacks coach.
To round out the new defensive staff, the team has hired Jeremy Garrett as their new defensive line coach, Michael Gray as assistant secondary coach and defensive analyst, and Mario Jeberaeel as assistant outside linebackers coach. Garrett replaces Brentson Bucker, who was fired alongside Caldwell. He has NFL experience with the Browns and most recently worked at the collegiate level with Auburn and Liberty. Gray and Jeberaeel both follow Nielsen from Atlanta. Gray joined the Falcons last year as a football analyst, while Jeberaeel came into the title of special projects: defense coach last season.
On the offensive side of the ball, Jacksonville announced the hires of running backs coach Jerry Mack and offensive quality control coach Jamel Mutunga, as well as the promotion of former offensive quality control coach Greg Austin to assistant offensive line coach. Mack replaces Bernie Parmalee, who took the same position with the Panthers after being fired alongside Caldwell. This will be Mack’s first NFL coaching gig after spending 20 years coaching at the collegiate level. Most recently, Mack coached a Volunteers team at Tennessee that finished top-12 in rushing yards per game twice in his three years.
Austin takes the position of Todd Washington, who also was let go with Parmalee and Caldwell. Mutunga takes his spot in quality control after serving as an offensive assistant with the Panthers last year. His first year of experience came in 2022, when he was the inaugural recipient of the Tony Dungy Diversity Coaching Fellowship in Indianapolis.
That sets the stage in Duval for the 2024 season. A few adjustments on offense and a changing of the guard on defense define the early portion of Jacksonville’s offseason. It will be worth watching to see if a new defensive staff can help a young Jaguars squad take the next step in the new league year.
NFC Coaching Updates: Falcons, Vikings, Garcia, Glenn
As the offseason chugs along, teams continue to reconstruct their coaching staffs. The Falcons made a number of moves just before the weekend, according to Michael Rothstein of ESPN. The staff continues to take shape under new head coach Raheem Morris.
On offense, two announcements were made on assistants looking to hold over from Arthur Smith‘s staff last year. Rothstein reports that assistant offensive line coach Shawn Flaherty and offensive assistant Patrick Kramer, who each came to Atlanta last offseason, will be retained in their previous positions.
A new hire was announced, as well, with the team naming Jacquies Smith as their new outside linebackers coach. Formerly a seven-year NFL defensive end, the former undrafted player out of Missouri will now accept his first NFL coaching position. After disappearing from the NFL-world for a spell and making an appearance in the XFL, Smith worked with draft-eligible players in pre-draft training. He most recently spent the 2023 season as an assistant edge coach for the Texas Longhorns.
In the front office, the team announced the hires of John Griffin as director of player performance and Rob Dadona as manager of coaching operations. Griffin follows Morris after spending the past three years with the Rams. Dadona replaces Brian Griffin, who departed to serve as Chief of Staff at the University of Maryland. Dadona spent the past five seasons with the Jets, serving as assistant to the head coach for the last three.
Here are a few other staff updates from around the NFC, starting with a couple out of Minneapolis:
- The Vikings announced two staff additions this weekend, naming assistant offensive line coach Shaun Sarrett and assistant to the head coach Henry Schneider IV. Sarrett replaces Justin Rascati, who departed for Los Angeles to serve as the Chargers pass-game coordinator. The two essentially swapped places, as Sarrett spent the past three years in the assistant offensive line coaching role with the Chargers. Schneider spent the last five years with the Raiders, most recently as the manager of coaching operations.
- The Cowboys added a hot, young name out of Washington to their defensive staff this weekend. Cristian Garcia, who spent part of last year as the Commanders interim defensive backs coach, will head to Dallas as a defensive quality control coach, per Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. Garcia was a name that former Commanders head coach Ron Rivera turned to for leadership after firing defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio. Now he’ll join the NFC East rival.
- Washington added their own coaching assistant last week. According to ESPN’s John Keim, John Glenn will join the staff as the Commanders’ new assistant special teams coach. Glenn replaces Ben Jacobs, who had served in the same role since following Rivera from Carolina in 2020 but was not retained by the new staff. Glenn changes roles a bit after spending the past six seasons as the Seahawks linebackers coach.