Chiefs’ Appeal Of Tampering Penalty Denied
4:27pm: Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt has issued a statement in response to the NFL’s ruling on the Chiefs’ appeal. It reads as follows:
“We appreciate the opportunity to make our appeal on this matter, and we acknowledge the minor reduction in fines imposed. However, we continue to believe that the facts of this case combined with the league’s inconsistent enforcement of its tampering policies do not warrant the most severe penalty for player-related tampering in league history.
“Having exhausted our options under the appeal process, we are turning the page on this issue and look forward to continuing our preparations for the 2016 season.”
4:18pm: The Chiefs’ appeal of the penalties handed down by the NFL for their tampering violation has been denied, says Adam Teicher of ESPN.com (Twitter links). According to Teicher, the fine levied against the Chiefs has been reduced from $250K to $200K, and Andy Reid‘s fine was also reduced, from $75K to $60K, but the rest of the penalties facing the team remain unchanged.
The NFL announced on the first day of the 2016 league year that it had fined the Chiefs $250K and taken away two draft picks from the franchise – including a 2016 third-rounder – as penalties for tampering with wide receiver Jeremy Maclin prior to last year’s free agent period. As expected, Kansas City will move forward without those lost draft picks.
Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweeted when the Chiefs initially filed their appeal that he had heard the league had gathered “pretty strong information” on the situation, making it unlikely that the penalties would be overturned.
The NFL alleged that the Chiefs were in direct contact with Maclin during the time leading up to 2015 free agency. Teams are only permitted to talk to player agents – not players themselves – during the legal tampering period, and can’t discuss free agents at all prior to that.
In addition to being docked a 2016 third-round pick, the Chiefs also lost a 2017 sixth-rounder as a result of the league’s ruling.
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Dolphins Claim Chris Jones Off Waivers
The Dolphins have claimed a player from a division rival, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com, who tweets that Miami was awarded defensive tackle Chris Jones off waivers. Jones was cut by the Patriots on Friday.
Jones, 25, missed the entire 2015 campaign, spending it on the PUP list, but was solid in his first two seasons in New England, recording nine total sacks in 28 games. He started 22 regular-season contests during those two years, and also started two of his four playoff games with the team, recording one postseason sack.
Because of his play during the 2013 and 2014 seasons, Jones was in line for an increased salary of $1.671MM in 2016, having been a recipient of a proven performance escalator. While those pay bumps are meant to be rewards for young players who have outperformed their draft slot, the raise may have actually contributed to Jones’ release, since the Pats likely deemed the $1.671MM non-guaranteed salary too rich for a player coming off a lost year.
For the Dolphins, rolling the dice on Jones makes some sense — because his salary is non-guaranteed, the team has nothing to lose if it turns out that he doesn’t earn a spot on Miami’s 53-man roster.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cardinals Release Cory Redding
Veteran defensive lineman Cory Redding, viewed as a possible cap casualty for the Cardinals, has officially been released by the team, according to a press release. As a vested veteran, Redding will become an unrestricted free agent without first passing through waivers.
The Cardinals entered the day with just $2.29MM in cap room, according to Over the Cap’s data. That gave the team the second-least amount of cap space in the NFL, limiting the club’s flexibility. Cutting Redding will reduce his cap hit from $4MM to $1MM, removing his non-guaranteed $3MM salary from the Cardinals’ books and creating a little more breathing room.
As Darren Urban writes at AZCardinals.com, Redding contemplated retirement before signing with the Cardinals last year. After playing a limited role in Arizona in 2015 – he failed to make a start for the first time since his 2003 rookie year – the 35-year-old may mull retiring once again. For now though, he’ll be a free agent, with the freedom to sign anywhere.
In his 12 games last season, Redding played 183 defensive snaps, picking up five tackles and two passes defended. He did show a knack for coming up with big plays, grabbing his second career interception, and recovering a pair of fumbles, including one for a touchdown.
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Broncos Sign Shiloh Keo, Brandian Ross
As first reported by Mike Klis of 9NEWS and Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post (Twitter links) earlier today, the Broncos have re-signed safety Shiloh Keo and signed safety Brandian Ross, the team announced in a press release. Both players received one-year deals.
With T.J. Ward and Darian Stewart penciled in as the Broncos’ starting safeties, neither Keo nor Ross is expected to have a significant role in Denver this season, if they even earn spots on the roster. Still, having lost David Bruton in free agency, the club could use some depth at the position
Keo, who joined the Broncos last December after making his case for a contract on Twitter to defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, played a little down the stretch and in the playoffs for the club, grabbing a Week 17 interception. He was was arrested for driving under the influence in February.
As for Ross, he started 13 games for the Raiders in 2013 and 10 more in 2014, but was cut in 2015 and didn’t find a new home until near the end of the season, when he signed in San Diego. The Chargers non-tendered him last month.
Here are a few more Broncos-related updates for Monday:
- With the Broncos’ voluntary offseason program underway, Von Miller won’t be in attendance, and Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports takes a closer look at the contract talks between Denver and its star pass rusher. According to Robinson, the two sides are believed to be about $20MM apart over the span of five years — about $4MM per season. The Broncos’ offer is reportedly around $18MM per year, while Miller is seeking something closer to top QB money ($22MM annually).
- Robinson’s piece includes plenty of interesting details, including several on Broncos cap guru Mike Sullivan. Some agents believe that, after locking up defensive lineman Derek Wolfe to a below-market deal, Sullivan and the Broncos are now attempting to get more players to agree to team-friendly contracts. Said one agent: “I think the Derek Wolfe deal screwed their heads up. It made [Mike] Sullivan believe he could get everyone to do bad deals. There is a lot of arrogance there.”
- Although Sullivan certainly has a significant role when it comes to contract negotiations, anyone who has been around the Broncos knows that John Elway “calls all [the] shots,” says Mike Klis of 9NEWS (Twitter link).
- Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall has yet to sign his RFA tender, but he’s still participating in workouts this week, signing a waiver to cover him in the event of an injury, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
- Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, who is entering the final year of his current contract, said today that he hopes to remain in Denver for several more years, as Brandon Krisztal of Denver Sports 760 tweets. “The City of Denver has been really good to me,” Sanders said. “I want to be a Bronco, I want to retire a Bronco.”
Eagles Sign Ryan Quigley
The Eagles have added some competition at the punter position, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer, who tweets that Ryan Quigley has signed a one-year contract with the club. The Eagles have since officially confirmed the move.
Quigley, 26, has been the Jets’ punter for the last three seasons, but was eligible for restricted free agency last month, and Gang Green opted not to tender him a contract. In 2015, Quigley’s 36.5 net yards per punt ranked second-last in the NFL among the league’s starting punters. He also ranked among the NFL’s worst punters in terms of overall return yardage (432 yards) and yards per return (12.7).
Conversely, Donnie Jones, the Eagles’ starting punter, had a solid 41.6 net yardage average on his attempts, good for sixth in the NFL, and limited opposing returners to 5.1 yards per attempts, which ranked third.
Based on the two punters’ performances, it seems unlikely that Quigley would supplant Jones as the starter in Philadelphia, but he’ll provide some competition in camp, and would represent a cheaper alternative if Jones struggles or gets injured.
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Case Keenum Signs RFA Tender With Rams
The only player to be tendered at a first-round level this offseason, Rams quarterback Case Keenum, has officially signed his RFA tender, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. The transaction doesn’t come as a surprise, since the first-round tender made it extremely unlikely that Keenum would get an offer sheet.
By assigning him a high-end tender worth $3.635MM, rather than the second-round tender ($2.553MM) or the right-of-first-refusal tender ($1.671MM), the Rams ensured that any team attempting to poach Keenum would have to be willing to send a first-round pick to Los Angeles to do so.
Keenum, 28, took over as the Rams’ starter last season after Nick Foles was benched — he went on to start five games, completing nearly 61% of his passes for 828 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception.
Keenum’s solid 2015 performance had head coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead talking this offseason as if he would head into the 2016 season as the team’s starting quarterback. Now that the club has acquired the first overall pick in the draft though, Keenum’s role looks a little less certain.
With Keenum, Foles, 2015 third-rounder Sean Mannion, and either Jared Goff or Carson Wentz all potentially in the mix at quarterback, the Rams will almost certainly have to trade or release at least one signal-caller before the season gets underway. While it’s possible that Keenum will be dealt, the Rams like him enough – and he’s cheap enough – that it would make sense to keep him around to compete for the starting job or to back up the No. 1 pick. Foles appears to be more expendable for now.
Still, now that Keenum has signed his RFA tender, he’s eligible to be traded, if the Rams do get an offer they like. A report last week suggested that the Broncos might have some interest in Keenum.
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NFC East Rumors: Eagles, Cox, Cowboys, Hoyer
The Eagles were reportedly in discussions with the Titans about a potential trade for the No. 1 pick before Tennessee sent that pick to Los Angeles. Asked today about how serious those talks were, Howie Roseman downplayed them, suggesting that his team was doing its “due diligence,” as Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes.
“I wouldn’t consider any discussions [serious] with any teams until you make deals,” Roseman, the de-facto Eagles GM, said. “I think it’s the same discussion with teams behind us. We’re having those discussions now. Teams in front us. We just have those conversations internally and weigh the cost-benefit of everything.”
While Roseman left the door open for plenty of trade possibilities, he shut at least one door, telling reporters today that the Eagles are “not trading” Fletcher Cox (Twitter links via Berman). Roseman made it clear that the team isn’t playing the “leverage game” with Cox, and plans on extending him and keeping him in Philadelphia for a long time.
Let’s check in on some other NFC East items….
- The Cowboys wouldn’t mind landing a veteran backup for Tony Romo, and would have interest in Brian Hoyer “at the right price,” a source tells Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. However, Williams cautions that Hoyer will likely be able to get more money – and perhaps the chance to compete for a starting job – with another team.
- In a conversation with TMZ Sports, free agent cornerback Antonio Cromartie admitted that his “dream choice” for his new team would be the Cowboys. “[Dallas] is very high on my list,” Cromartie said.
- Jeff Heath‘s new four-year contract with the Cowboys is worth $7.671MM, including a $1.8MM signing bonus, writes Todd Archer of ESPN.com. The defensive back and special-teamer also saw his cap number for 2016 reduced a little, going from $1.671MM to $1.35MM.
- John Keim of ESPN.com breaks down the keys to success for Washington in 2016, identifying some players to watch and suggesting that the team should address its defensive line in the draft.
Giants Re-Sign Josh Brown
12:17pm: The Giants have re-signed Brown, per Paul Schwartz of the New York Post (Twitter link).
12:07pm: The Giants are expected to bring back veteran free agent Josh Brown to handle kicking duties for the club, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News. Vacchiano reports that Brown is set to sign a two-year, $4MM deal, which will feature $1MM in guarantees and could be worth up to $4.75MM in total.
For Brown, it will be a raise on his previous salary with the Giants — his last two-year contract paid him $2.7MM. During those two years, Brown was one of the league’s most accurate kickers, converting 24 of 26 field goals in 2014, and 30 of 32 field goals in 2015. He also made all but one of his extra point attempts, for a total of five overall misses in two years.
Brown, who will turn 37 later this month, has racked up a total of 1,353 points over the course of his NFL career, with the Seahawks, Rams, Bengals, and Giants. His 134 points in 2015 represented a career high, and earned him his first Pro Bowl nod.
Assuming Brown continues to hold the Giants’ kicking job until his new contract expires, he has a good chance to become one of the NFL’s top 20 scorers of all time. He currently ranks 30th on the league’s all-time scoring list.
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Tony Jefferson, D.J. Swearinger Sign RFA Tenders
With their voluntary offseason workouts getting underway, the Cardinals have secured three of their restricted free agents, the club announced today. As Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com details, safety Tony Jefferson, safety D.J. Swearinger, and wide receiver Jaron Brown all signed their RFA tenders.
All three players received low-end RFA tenders worth $1.671MM from the Cardinals, and there was some speculation that Jefferson, who drew some interest from other teams, including Oakland, might sign an offer sheet, which the Cardinals would have to decide whether or not to match. However, Jefferson and his two teammates will all return to Arizona on one-year, $1.671MM contracts, making them potentially eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2017.
Jefferson, who has started 17 games for the Cardinals over the last three seasons, filled up the stat sheet in 2015, recording 74 tackles, three forced fumbles, two sacks, and a pair of interceptions, including one for a touchdown. He suggested earlier in April that he didn’t mind the idea of playing as an RFA this year rather than signing a below-market offer sheet.
“You don’t want to get yourself locked into long-term deals where you don’t even like your salary, and you’re unrestricted next year, so you have a chance to make more money,” Jefferson said.
Swearinger, a former second-round pick, joined the Cardinals last December and appeared in four regular-season games for the team down the stretch, while Brown played in all 16 games, but caught just 11 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown.
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Draft Updates: Jack, J. Smith, Reed, Elliott
Linebackers Myles Jack and Jaylon Smith are two of the biggest wild cards in this year’s draft, as both players have the talent to be top-five picks, but the health concerns to take them entirely off some teams’ boards.
Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News (Twitter link) spoke to one source who calls Jack a “time bomb,” suggesting that his knee issues may limit him to just a few good seasons, if that. One source – possibly the same one – also tells Bowen that Smith’s re-check showed a “drop-foot problem, caused by nerve damage,” adding that his prognosis hasn’t improved since the combine.
Not every team will agree with that source’s assessment of Jack and Smith – some teams are said to be encouraged by Jack’s latest medicals – but many other clubs will likely view those prospects the same way, meaning there’s a chance that both players, particularly Smith, could slip a little further than expected on draft day next week.
Here are several more draft updates from around the league:
- At least three more teams are getting a first-hand look at Alabama defensive tackle Jarran Reed this week, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who tweets that Reed will visit the Jets on Monday, the Chargers on Tuesday, and the Texans on Wednesday.
- Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott will have his previously-announced visit with the Bears this Wednesday, tweets Ian Rapoport.
- The Lions are hosting Clemson cornerback Mackensie Alexander for a visit today, tweets Rand Getlin of the NFL Network. Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter) that Detroit is actively exploring the defensive back market in this year’s draft more than most other teams.
- Virginia Tech cornerback Kendall Fuller, who received positive reports following his medical re-check last week, is visiting the Jets today and will meet with the Panthers on Wednesday, per Rand Getlin (Twitter link).
- Middle Tennessee State defensive back Kevin Byard, who has already visited seven teams, will visit four more this week. According to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post, Byard is making trips to visit the Ravens, Jaguars, Buccaneers, and Panthers.
- Boston College linebacker Steven Daniels is visiting Washington this week, and has previously worked out for the Browns and Colts, among other teams, tweets Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net.