AFC North Notes: Browns, Still, Flacco
With his job security potentially dwindling, Browns head coach Mike Pettine suggested on Monday that there’s some tension within the organization, dropping some hints without specifically saying which departments are at odds. After pointing out that a team needs its building to be unified in order to have success, Pettine was asked whether the Browns’ building is unified, as Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com details.
“It’s hard to be at this point,” Pettine said. “It’s human nature. When things don’t go well, everybody has a tendency to kind of bunker in and get into that mode. I think we all want what’s best for the Cleveland Browns. we all have ideas on how to get it done, and we need to be collaborative and we need to make sure that we’re picking the best ideas and pushing those agendas moving forward.
“I can’t sit here and say, ‘Absolutely, we’re all on board, 100 percent,'” Pettine continued. “That’s not reality because when things don’t go well, everybody has their opinions and their reasons why, but it’s going to come down to a brutal self-assessment and to be able to have the strength to make tough decisions and trust them and move forward.”
As we wait to see whether Pettine will be a part of the Browns as the team tries to move forward, let’s check in on some other items from out of the AFC North….
- Former Bengals defensive tackle Devon Still may be back under contract with an NFL team in a few weeks. According to Coley Harvey of ESPN.com, Still said on Monday that he has received reserve/futures contract offers from two teams. Those deals can’t be officially signed until after a team’s season comes to an end.
- Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is undergoing surgery on his left knee today, head coach John Harbaugh confirmed (link via Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com). It has been nearly two and a half weeks since Flacco tore his ACL against the Rams, but he had to wait for the swelling to go down before going under the knife. Dr. James Andrews will perform the procedure.
- With one tight end suspended and two others dealing with nagging injuries, the Ravens had former New Hampshire tight end Harold Spears in for a visit, per Hensley (Twitter link).
AFC West Notes: Charles, Raiders, Broncos
When the 2016 season begins, Jamaal Charles will be coming off his second major knee injury, and will be on the verge of turning 30 years old, practically ancient for a running back. However, the standout running back remains under contract with the Chiefs for two more years, and he intends to come back strong for Kansas City next season, as he tells Dave Skretta of The Associated Press.
“That’s the goal,” Charles said. “I had 11 [games] left in the season when I [tore my ACL], so it’s a lot of time to come back from it. The way I’m moving, I’ll be back before the season starts. I want to be back. I want to play. I want to be out there again.”
Here’s more from around the AFC West:
- In the wake of a Monday report which suggested that Oakland city leaders had spoken to the NFL about a possible new stadium near the O.co Coliseum site, NFL executive VP Eric Grubman tells Matthew Artz of the Contra Costa Times that the league isn’t offering any more help to keep the Raiders in Oakland than it would to help to keep the Rams in St. Louis or the Chargers in San Diego. However, Grubman did confirm that the NFL is open to discussing the Coliseum City development with Oakland.
- Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio said on Monday that rookie linebacker Neiron Ball, who has missed six straight games due to a knee injury, will likely land on the injured reserve list, which would open up a spot on the team’s 53-man roster. Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com has the details.
- The Broncos had already been battling some injury issues at safety, and now will be without David Bruton for the next week or two, as Mike Klis of 9NEWS writes. Having signed Josh Bush last week to compensate for being without T.J. Ward, the club may not to add another safety this week, but that decision likely won’t have to be made until closer to Sunday.
Cole’s Latest: Coughlin, Pagano, Chargers, Rams
Earlier today, we rounded up several items related to head coaches whose jobs may be in jeopardy as the season nears an end. Jason Cole of Bleacher Report has provided a few updates on that topic as well, discussing a couple of the coaches we mentioned earlier, as well as a couple others. Here’s the latest:
- The Giants aren’t likely to fire head coach Tom Coughlin before the end of the season, but they certainly could consider at after the season if they miss the playoffs, says Cole (video link). However, Cole cautions that the franchise has very specific qualifications in mind for its head coach, including a proven ability to deal with the pressure and attention that comes with working in New York. If the Giants don’t have strong potential candidates in mind that fit that bill, they may think twice about letting go of Coughlin.
- The Colts’ defense allowed the Steelers to put up 45 points on Sunday, just over a year after letting Pittsburgh score 51 on them. That sort of repeat performance is a bad sign and could spark major changes for the team, according to Cole (video link). Although Cole suggests that Chuck Pagano is back on the hot seat, I’d expect the club to wait and see how the season finishes before making any decisions there — a playoff berth and a postseason win or two would make it a tough call. If Indianapolis misses the playoffs, it’s much harder to imagine Pagano keeping his job.
- While Chargers head coach Mike McCoy and Rams head coach Jeff Fisher are both on the hot seat in their respective cities, there’s a scenario in which one or both coaches could keep their jobs for another year or two. As Cole explains (video link), the transition period if either of those franchises moves to Los Angeles in 2016 will be a rocky one, with the new L.A. team(s) playing in a temporary stadium for a couple seasons. As such, those clubs may be more inclined to hang onto their current coaches, perhaps putting off a change in a year or two and then making a new hire as excitement for that new stadium starts to build. I’m not sure I buy that theory, for a number of reasons, and Cole himself acknowledges that it’s one possible outcome, but perhaps not the most likely one.
Ravens’ Nick Boyle Suspended Four Games
The Ravens haven’t gotten much this season out of their 2015 draft class, and they’ll see yet another one of their rookies sidelined for the last four games of the year. The team announced today (via Twitter) that tight end Nick Boyle has been suspended without pay for four games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.
Boyle, who was selected in the fifth round of this year’s draft, caught 18 balls for 153 yards in his rookie season. With Boyle set to hit the reserve/suspended list, only Crockett Gillmore and another rookie, Maxx Williams, remain on the tight end depth chart for Baltimore, and both players are banged up.
Head coach John Harbaugh said today that Gillmore and Williams both have a good chance to play next Sunday, but he noted that the team will still bring in tight ends for an audition (Twitter links via Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun). Practice squad tight end Konrad Reuland looks like a candidate to join the 53-man roster as well.
As for Boyle, Harbaugh said the rookie’s suspension isn’t for steroids. The head coach declined to name the substance that resulted in the failed test, but suggested it was a common violation, adding that Boyle admitted it was a stupid mistake (Twitter links via Zrebiec).
Seahawks Cut Cary Williams
Less than nine months after signing him to a lucrative three-year contract, the Seahawks have decided to move on from Cary Williams. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link), Seattle is releasing the veteran cornerback.
After spending several seasons as a starting cornerback for the Ravens and Eagles, Williams signed a three-year, $18MM deal in March with the Seahawks, looking to step in as a replacement for departed free agent Byron Maxwell. However, the 30-year-old has struggled this season, with Pro Football Focus ranking him 102nd out of 118 qualified cornerbacks. Williams was inactive for the Seahawks’ last two games, coinciding with Jeremy Lane‘s activation to the 53-man roster.
Because Williams’ 2015 salary was fully guaranteed, Seattle will remain on the hook for his full $3.5MM salary and $4.667MM cap hit for this year. Assuming Williams goes unclaimed on waivers, he’ll count for about $2.333MM in dead money against Seattle’s 2016 cap.
Bills Notes: Ryan, Carpenter, A. Williams
While Rex Ryan has always been very unlikely to be a one-and-done coach in Buffalo, there was talk around the league last week that Bills ownership was “none too pleased” with the team’s recent play, says Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports. As such, the team’s Sunday win over Houston likely has Ryan breathing a little easier.
If the Bills miss the playoffs this year, I expect Ryan to get at least one more shot in 2016 at making the postseason. As Garafolo notes though, the team’s owners are in win-now mode, having OK’d big-money maneuvers such as the trade and extension for LeSean McCoy, as well as lucrative contracts for Charles Clay, Jerry Hughes, and Marcell Dareus, among others.
Here’s more out of Buffalo:
- Kicker Dan Carpenter missed a field goal and an extra point during Sunday’s win over the Texans, and has now missed four of each for the season. However, his job isn’t in danger, according to Ryan, who declared that “we’re not getting rid of” Carpenter (link via Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News). “Moving that [extra point] back, there’s a lot of people who miss kicks,” Ryan said. “Look, we’ve got a veteran kicker. You guys know he can kick in the conditions, and not everybody can do that.”
- Safety Aaron Williams, who is on injured reserve with the designation to return, has a 50/50 chance of returning to the field for the Bills this season, per Ryan (Twitter link via Skurski).
- The injury sustained by cornerback Stephon Gilmore on Sunday isn’t expected to be a season-ender, according to Ryan (Twitter link via Skurski). There has yet to be an official diagnosis or recovery timeline announced for Gilmore.
Eagles Release Miles Austin
The Eagles have parted ways with veteran wide receiver Miles Austin, tweets Howard Eskin of FOX 29 in Philadelphia. Austin will have to clear waivers before becoming a free agent, but he’s unlikely to be claimed, given the money left on his deal and his performance this season.
Austin, who signed a one-year, $2.5MM contract with the Eagles in March, has been a disappointment for the team this season. Despite seeing a decent amount of playing time, the ex-Cowboy has hauled in just 13 of 31 targets, for 224 yards and a touchdown. He was inactive for his final game with the Eagles.
While Philadelphia could add another receiver to the roster to replace Austin, the team still has plenty of depth at the position on the 53-man squad. The move could result in a few extra snaps for players like Josh Huff and Jonathan Krause.
Rams Fire OC Frank Cignetti
The Rams have become the latest team to fire an offensive coordinator, announcing today that they’ve parted ways with OC Frank Cignetti (Twitter link via Myles Simmons of STLouisRams.com). St. Louis is the fourth NFL club to fire its offensive coordinator this season, joining the Colts, Dolphins, and Lions.
According to the team, assistant head coach and tight ends coach Rob Boras will take over as offensive coordinator for the rest of the season. Boras received consideration for the job before Cingetti was promoted last winter, but ultimately lost the competition — however, he received a new assistant head coach title at the time, and was in charge of the running game in addition to coaching the team’s tight ends.
Cignetti, who replaced former Rams offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, only lasted 12 regular season games in the role. However, the move doesn’t come as a real surprise. St. Louis has arguably had the league’s worst offense this season, even with Todd Gurley enjoying a handful of big games. Football Outsiders ranks the club dead last in offensive DVOA, with the passing offense – led by Nick Foles and Case Keenum – grading well below that of any other team in he league.
After Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals, head coach Jeff Fisher admitted that he was “almost out of answers” for how to solve the Rams’ offensive problems. Boras will be tasked with providing some answers in the next four weeks, but if the unit doesn’t show any improvement, both he and Fisher may be at risk of losing their jobs in January.
Los Angeles Rumors: 12/7/15
The Chargers‘ and Raiders‘ joint stadium plan for Carson seems to have momentum at this point than the Rams‘ Inglewood proposal, writes Peter King of TheMMQB.com in today’s Monday Morning Quarterback column. As King explains, the reason is fairly simple: owners around the league want to support Chargers owner Dean Spanos, whom they feel has done all he can to try to make a stadium work in San Diego.
King’s piece includes plenty of interesting tidbits on the Los Angeles situation, so let’s dive in and round them up….
- The Committee on Los Angeles Opportunities will likely vote 4-2 or 5-1 in favor of the Carson project, a source tells King. However, that prediction hinges on how solid the St. Louis stadium proposal is — if any of the six owners on the committee are uncertain about St. Louis’ proposal, they could switch to the Inglewood plan.
- Looking ahead to the league-wide vote involving all 32 owners, neither side is close to having the 24 votes necessary to approve a relocation plan, according to King.
- Disney CEO Robert Iger has been a major boon to the Carson side, with one source suggesting to King that Iger “feels like a partner to people like Roger Goodell and Bob Kraft.” One ownership source believes that if the Carson plan just involved the Chargers, Spanos, and Iger, it would already have 24 votes from league owners — some owners, however, view the Raiders as a drag on the project.
- While the league would like to finalize its Los Angeles plan during the January meetings in Houston, that’s not a lock. It’s probable, but not certain, says King.
- If Kroenke’s Inglewood project doesn’t come to fruition, no one knows what he’ll do, writes King. If Kroenke doesn’t like St. Louis’ stadium plan, it could be “an ugly shotgun marriage,” perhaps with the Rams owner “refusing to go to the altar.”
- One more L.A. note from Daniel Kaplan of the SportsBusiness Journal (Twitter link): Oakland city leaders have talked to the NFL about developing a stadium in Oakland. While those discussions are ongoing, it’s hard to imagine the city putting together a concrete plan within the next few weeks.
2016 NFL Free Agents
Pro Football Rumors’ up-to-date list of 2016 NFL free agents is below. These are players who are eligible for restricted or unrestricted free agency after the 2015 season. The player’s 2016 age is in parentheses. Players are generally sorted by the position at which they played most in ’15, or the position at which their most recent team listed them.
Players who finished the 2015 season on an NFL roster but don’t have a contract for 2016 are listed below, along with a few other notable free agents who didn’t finish the 2015 season on an NFL roster, and several players who have been cut since the season ended.
Players eligible for restricted free agency are marked with (R), while non-exclusive franchise and transition players will be marked with (F) and (T) respectively. Exclusive rights free agents are not included. All other free agents are assumed to be unrestricted.
If you have any corrections or omissions, please contact us. For instant free agent updates, be sure to follow us on Twitter @pfrumors.
Updated 12-8-16 (10:29am CT)
Quarterbacks
Jimmy Clausen (29)
Matt Flynn (31)
Josh Freeman (28)
Bruce Gradkowski (33)
Tarvaris Jackson (33)
Ryan Lindley (27)
Johnny Manziel (24)
Sean Renfree (26)
Michael Vick (36)
Charlie Whitehurst (34)
T.J. Yates (29)
Running Backs
Montee Ball (26)
Joe Banyard (27)
Ahmad Bradshaw (30)
Bryce Brown (25)
Donald Brown (29)
Anthony Dixon (29)
Kendall Gaskins (26)
Toby Gerhart (29)
Jonas Gray (25)
DuJuan Harris (28)
Roy Helu (27)
Kendall Hunter (28)
Fred Jackson (35)
Steven Jackson (33)
Isaiah Pead (26)
Trent Richardson (26)
Stevan Ridley (27)
Zac Stacy (25)
C.J. Spiller (29)
Daniel Thomas (29)
Pierre Thomas (32)
George Winn (25)
Fullbacks
Tyler Clutts (32)
Derrick Coleman (26)
Austin Johnson (27)
Jorvorskie Lane (29)
Will Tukuafu (32)
Darrel Young (29)
Wide Receivers
Jared Abbrederis (25)
Seyi Ajirotutu (29)
Miles Austin (32)
Jason Avant (33)
Brenton Bersin (26)
Dwayne Bowe (32)
Vincent Brown (27)
Jeremy Butler (25)
Andre Caldwell (31)
Michael Campanaro (25)
Marques Colston (33)
Riley Cooper (29)
Jerricho Cotchery (34)
B.J. Daniels (27)
Aaron Dobson (25)
Brandon Gibson (29)
Chris Givens (26)
Leonard Hankerson (27)
Brian Hartline (30)
Stephen Hill (25)
Damaris Johnson (27)
Jacoby Jones (32)
James Jones (32)
Greg Little (27)
Denarius Moore (28)
Marlon Moore (28)
Joe Morgan (28)
David Nelson (30)
Hakeem Nicks (28)
Chris Owusu (26)
Rueben Randle (25)
Jerome Simpson (30)
Marcus Thigpen (30)
Kenbrell Thompkins (28)
Brian Tyms (27)
Bryan Walters (29)
Nate Washington (33)
Wes Welker (35)
Griff Whalen (26)
Myles White (26)
Roddy White (35)
Kyle Williams (28)
Mike Williams (29)
Tight Ends
Scott Chandler (31)
Orson Charles (25)
Owen Daniels (34)
Dorin Dickerson (28)
Jim Dray (29)
Daniel Fells (33)
Chase Ford (26)
Garrett Graham (30)
Brian Leonhardt (26)
Anthony McCoy (29)
Matthew Mulligan (31)
Brian Parker (24)
Bear Pascoe (30)
Andrew Quarless (28)
Allen Reisner (28)
Konrad Reuland (29)
Alex Smith (34)
Matt Spaeth (32)
Tackles
Jason Fox (28)
Bryce Harris (27)
Lamar Holmes (27)
Jamon Meredith (30)
Erik Pears (34)
Byron Stingily (28)
J’Marcus Webb (28)
Guards
Jon Asamoah (28)
Mackenzy Bernadeau (30)
Willie Colon (33)
Paul Fanaika (30)
Andrew Gardner (30)
Tyronne Green (30)
Todd Herremans (34)
Josh LeRibeus (27)
Lance Louis (31)
Jacques McClendon (28)
Mike McGlynn (31)
Brandon Mosley (28)
Patrick Omameh (27)
Garrett Reynolds (29)
Geoff Schwartz (30)
Amini Silatolu (28)
Shelley Smith (29)
Dallas Thomas (27)
Johnnie Troutman (29)
Louis Vasquez (29)
Centers
Brian De La Puente (31)
Brian Folkerts (26)
Khaled Holmes (26)
Lemuel Jeanpierre (29)
Doug Legursky (30)
Will Montgomery (33)
Drew Nowak (26)
Mike Person (28)
Dallas Reynolds (32)
Trevor Robinson (26)
Lyle Sendlein (32)
James Stone (24)
Bryan Stork (25)
Fernando Veslasco (31)
Julian Vandervelde (29)
J.D. Walton (29)
Ryan Wendell (30)
4-3 Defensive Ends
Frank Alexander (27)
Kroy Biermann (31)
Alex Carrington (29)
Quinton Coples (26)
Demarcus Dobbs (29)
Larry English (30)
Wallace Gilberry (31)
Greg Hardy (28)
Chris McCain (24)
Damontre Moore (24)
Ropati Pitoitua (31)
George Selvie (29)
Matt Shaughnessy (30)
Josh Shirley (24)
Bjoern Werner (26)
C.J. Wilson (29)
Jarius Wynn (30)
3-4 Defensive Ends
Chris Canty (34)
Clifton Geathers (29)
Defensive Tackles
Brandon Bair (32)
Da’Quan Bowers (26)
Red Bryant (32)
Barry Cofield (32)
Dwan Edwards (35)
Kenrick Ellis (28)
Andre Fluellen (31)
Bruce Gaston (24)
Nick Hayden (30)
John Hughes (28)
Ishmaa’ily Kitchen (28)
Terrance Knighton (30)
Sammie Lee Hill (30)
Mike Martin (26)
Henry Melton (30)
C.J. Mosley (33)
Louis Nix (25)
Leon Orr (24)
Randy Starks (33)
Alameda Ta’amu (26)
Ian Williams (27)
4-3 Outside Linebackers
James Anderson (33)
Jayson DiManche (26)
Darius Fleming (27)
Khaseem Greene (27)
A.J. Hawk (32)
David Hawthorne (31)
Danny Lansanah (31)
Jamari Lattimore (28)
Travis Lewis (28)
Orie Lemon (29)
Nick Moody (26)
Eric Pinkins (25)
O’Brien Schofield (29)
Tony Steward (24)
Jason Trusnik (32)
3-4 Outside Linebackers
Jason Babin (36)
Adam Hayward (32)
Manny Lawson (32)
Dezman Moses (27)
Andy Mulumba (26)
Mike Neal (29)
Jonathan Newsome (25)
Calvin Pace (36)
Scott Solomon (28)
Lamarr Woodley (32)
Inside Linebackers
Jasper Brinkley (31)
Kavell Conner (29)
Shelby Harris (25)
Amarlo Herrera (25)
Nate Irving (28)
Nico Johnson (26)
James Laurinaitis (30)
Curtis Lofton (30)
Casey Matthews (27)
Joe Mays (31)
James-Michael Johnson (27)
Sio Moore (26)
DeMeco Ryans (32)
Andy Studebaker (31)
Justin Tuggle (26)
Uani ‘Unga (29)
Cornerbacks
Phillip Adams (28)
Cortez Allen (28)
Alan Ball (31)
Bill Bentley (27)
E.J. Biggers (29)
Zackary Bowman (32)
Jalil Brown (29)
Tarell Brown (31)
Brandon Browner (32)
Crezdon Butler (29)
Perrish Cox (29)
Antonio Cromartie (32)
Chris Culliver (28)
Pierre Desir (26)
Ras-I Dowling (28)
Greg Ducre (24)
Randall Evans (24)
Cortland Finnegan (32)
Jamell Fleming (27)
Charles Gaines (24)
Jayron Hosley (26)
Demontre Hurst (25)
Tramain Jacobs (24)
Charles James (26)
Keenan Lewis (30)
Nick Marshall (24)
Trumaine McBride (31)
Demetrius McCray (25)
Dee Milliner (25)
Chris Owens (30)
Shaun Prater (26)
Denzel Rice (23)
Cassius Vaughn (29)
Darrin Walls (28)
Melwin White (26)
Cary Williams (32))
Safeties
Antonio Allen (28)
Will Allen (34)
Larry Asante (28)
Dion Bailey (24)
Omar Bolden (27)
Terrence Brooks (25)
Sergio Brown (28)
Stevie Brown (29)
David Bruton (29)
Josh Bush (27)
Chris Clemons (31)
Craig Dahl (31)
Louis Delmas (29)
Josh Evans (25)
Dashon Goldson (32)
Winston Guy (26)
Will Hill (26)
Jaiquawn Jarrett (27)
Don Jones (26)
Jordan Kovacs (26)
Sherrod Martin (32)
Taylor Mays (28)
Danny McCray (28)
L.J. McCray (25)
Tevin McDonald (24)
Brandon Meriweather (32)
Rahim Moore (26)
William Moore (31)
Ryan Mundy (31)
Nick Perry (26)
Sean Richardson (26)
Antrel Rolle (34)
Brandian Ross (27)
Cooper Taylor (26)
Ross Ventrone (30)
Brock Vereen (24)
Jimmy Wilson (30)
Kickers
Josh Brown (37)
Travis Coons (24)
Jordan Gay (26)
Shayne Graham (38)
Garrett Hartley (30)
Zach Hocker (25)
Josh Scobee (34)
Blair Walsh (26)
Punters
Britton Colquitt (31)
Tim Masthay (29)
Long Snappers
Danny Aiken (28)
Clint Gresham (30)
Rick Lovato (24)
Over The Cap and FOX Sports were used in the creation of this post.