Poll: Will Dez Bryant Sign Long-Term Deal?
The Cowboys’ signing of former first-round pick A.J. Jenkins yesterday drew some attention, but there’s a good chance that Dallas simply added Jenkins to its roster to help the team get through its offseason program. With Dez Bryant not expected to participate in OTAs, and his attendance for June’s minicamp still a question mark, Jenkins represents another healthy body at the wide receiver position, perhaps one with a little upside.
It’s possible that Bryant returns to fully participate in Dallas’ offseason program sooner rather than later, but that would likely require the two sides reaching resolution on his contract situation. Having been assigned the franchise tag, Bryant is in line to earn a one-year salary of $12.823MM if he signs his one-year contract tender, but he hasn’t done so yet.
Like most star players who are franchised, Bryant would presumably prefer to secure a long-term extension rather than going year to year with the Cowboys. However, while the 26-year-old’s on-field production leaves no question that he should be paid like one of the NFL’s top receivers, Dallas may still have lingering concerns about his history of off-field issues.
As Joel Corry of CBSSports.com noted last week when he took a look at Bryant’s situation, the Cowboys’ most recent publicly-reported contract offer looked massive at first glance, featuring a $114MM overall price tag. However, that offer was reportedly for 10 years, with just $20MM in guaranteed money. That’s a very team-friendly structure, considering consecutive franchise tags would pay Bryant significantly more than $25MM in guaranteed money, and would leave him in position to hit the open market at age 28.
Corry points out that the Cowboys are making the Bryant negotiations trickier for themselves by making concessions in contract agreements with other players whose off-field concerns were arguably more significant than Bryant’s — the club was willing to include a clause in Greg Hardy‘s contract that prevents him from being franchised, and La’el Collins‘ new deal doesn’t feature any offsets. Depending on how the negotiations with Bryant progress, the wideout’s camp may point to those deals and rightly argue that a player with Bryant’s track record (an average of 1,312 yards and 14 touchdowns per year since 2012) should receive even more favorable terms.
With Julio Jones, Demaryius Thomas, and A.J. Green also in line for new deals this offseason, all four teams may be trying to wait out the market rather than setting it themselves. In Thomas’ and Bryant’s cases, a July 15 deadline looms — if no long-term contract is worked out by that point, signing the one-year franchise tag looks like the most likely outcome for both star receivers.
What do you think? Does Bryant sign a multiyear extension with the Cowboys within the next few weeks, or is it more probable that he plays out the year on his franchise tag?
Minor Moves: Tuesday
Here are Tuesday’s minor transactions from around the NFL, with any additional moves added to the top of the list throughout the evening:
- The Colts announced a series of roster moves today, adding free agent cornerback Chance Casey and undrafted guard Will Corbin. In a corresponding transaction, the club waived-injured cornerback Joshua Mitchell, who will revert to IR if he clears waivers. Casey saw some regular season action over the last two years with the Raiders, and also spent time with the Niners.
- Undrafted rookie free agent Zach D’Orazio signed with the Patriots today, a league source tells Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post. The former Akron wideout informed Cleveland broadcaster John Telich (Twitter link) yesterday that he’d be signing with New England.
- The Browns have waived a pair of players who spent time on the team’s practice squad in 2014, according to a team release. Linebacker Keith Pough and defensive lineman Calvin Barnett were both cut, with Pough receiving an injury designation (hamstring).
- Defensive lineman Daryl Waud, who signed with Washington last week following a tryout, has been waived with a left squad designation, the club announced today (Twitter link). Waud is expected to join the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts after clearing waivers.
Latest On Adrian Peterson
As expected, the Vikings’ organized team activities got underway today without Adrian Peterson, and the running back is prepared to forfeit his $250K workout bonus by not reporting to Minnesota’s OTAs. Unhappy with his current situation, Peterson has “ruminated on the possibility of retirement more than once” since last season, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com.
The update from La Canfora appears to be the latest attempt by Peterson’s camp to regain some leverage in the running back’s standoff with the Vikings. The team has so far expressed a complete unwillingness to explore trade possibilities for Peterson, and at this point in the offseason, it’s not likely that there would be a long list of suitors anyway.
As Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link) observes, while renegotiating Peterson’s contract to guarantee some money is one tactic the Vikings could use to try to mend fences with their star running back, the 30-year-old’s primary goal is to play somewhere besides Minnesota. Still, no matter how strong Peterson’s desire is to move on, or how many rumors his camp leaks about a potential holdout or the possibility of retirement, the Vikes appear unlikely to change their stance, writes La Canfora.
Except for perhaps the Cowboys, no team currently looks like a reasonable trade partner for the Vikings, and it has always seemed like a long shot that any club would part with multiple top draft picks to land a 30-year-old running back set to earn a $12.75MM salary. Ultimately, as La Canfora outlines, the end game now is probably what it has been all along — the Vikes making some changes to Peterson’s contract, and perhaps restoring the bonuses that he’s currently in the process of forfeiting.
With Peterson and agent Ben Dogra digging their heels in, it may be a few weeks – or even months – before we find out how this situation will be resolved. However, this late in the offseason, it would be an unexpected twist if Peterson retired or was traded.
West Notes: Broncos, Bennett, Rivers
The Broncos will have to make a call this week on whether or not they want to keep Antonio Smith on their roster as their organized team activities get underway, writes Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. Smith is being investigated following a complaint of possible child abuse of a sexual nature, and while that’s a serious allegation, the defensive lineman has yet to be arrested or charged with a crime, so Denver’s decision isn’t as clear-cut as the one the Bears faced with Ray McDonald.
As we wait to see whether or not the Broncos decide to cut ties with Smith, let’s round up a few more notes out of the NFL’s two West divisions….
- Russell Wilson, Jimmy Graham, and Cliff Avril won’t report immediately to the Seahawks‘ OTAs as they deal with various personal and family matters, according to Danny Neil of 710 ESPN Radio in Seattle (Twitter links). The more notable absence for Seattle is defensive end Michael Bennett, writes NFL.com’s Kevin Patra, citing ESPN Radio. The standout pass rusher suggested earlier this offseason that he wouldn’t mind reworking his contract, which he just signed a year ago.
- Philip Rivers is in action for the Chargers as they begin their OTAs, but there hasn’t been much contract-related discussion between the two sides this month, tweets Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
- Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf recently reiterated that she opposes the idea of spending any public funds on a new football stadium in the city, as Rachel Swan of SFGate.com details. For a new stadium to work for the Raiders in Oakland, a gap of about $400MM in financing would have to be closed somehow.
Cowboys Sign A.J. Jenkins
12:07pm: The Cowboys have officially signed Jenkins, the team confirmed today in a press release.
11:53am: To make room on their roster for Jenkins, the Cowboys are waiving wide receiver Chris Boyd with an injured designation, tweets Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com. Boyd spent some time last season on Dallas’ practice squad before signing a reserve/futures contract with the team in January.
10:08am: After signing Darren McFadden earlier this offseason, the Cowboys are adding another former first-round offensive playmaker to their roster, according to Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, who tweets that A.J. Jenkins is signing with the team. Jenkins worked out for Dallas last week.
Like McFadden, Jenkins hasn’t lived up to his draft position so far in his NFL career, though the running back has at least seen plenty of playing time. After being selected 30th overall by the 49ers in 2012, Jenkins never recorded a single reception in San Francisco, and was traded to the Chiefs prior to the 2013 season. In two seasons in Kansas City, the Illinois product grabbed just 17 balls, and was cut back in February along with Donnie Avery.
While the Cowboys may still see some upside in Jenkins, it’s also possible that he’ll simply be a camp body, and won’t make the cut when teams reduce their rosters from 90 players to 53 at the end of the preseason.
Jenkins also worked out for the Jets this month.
Tashaun Gipson Not Attending Browns’ OTAs
The Browns’ organized team activities get underway today, and one notable defender won’t be in attendance. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via NFL.com’s Marc Sessler), safety Tashaun Gipson doesn’t intend to report to the team’s second round of offseason workouts. Gipson also skipped the first portion of the club’s voluntary spring program.
As I noted earlier this month when I provided an update on this year’s restricted free agent class, Gipson is the only RFA who appears demonstratively unhappy with his contract situation. After receiving a second-round tender from Cleveland, the safety has yet to sign that one-year offer, and is seeking a long-term contract, according to Rapoport.
Gipson, 24, has a stronger résumé than most players who become restricted free agents after their first three NFL seasons. Over the last two years, the Wyoming product has started 26 games for the Browns, racking up 146 tackles during that stretch and showing a knack for coming up with big plays — he has grabbed 11 interceptions during the last two seasons, returning two of them for touchdowns. Despite playing just 11 games in 2014, Gipson earned a Pro Bowl nod.
If Gipson wants to play hardball with the Browns, he’s in a decent position to do so. Because he remains unsigned, he could skip the team’s mandatory minicamp and decline to report to training camp without risking a fine. Still, it would be a surprise if Gipson’s holdout extended into the regular season, since another strong year would put him in line for a nice payday in 2016, when he’s eligible for unrestricted free agency.
NFC North Notes: Ihedigbo, Peterson, Bears
Here’s the latest out of the NFC North, as a handful of teams’ OTAs around the league get underway….
- Safety James Ihedigbo, who is seeking a new contract, will report to the Lions‘ offseason workouts today, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter links). Birkett adds that Ihedigbo will be at the team’s OTAs and minicamp, presumably as a show of good faith as he attempts to work out a new deal.
- Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (Twitter links) clears up some misinformation about Adrian Peterson‘s contract with the Vikings, pointing out that the running back has to participate in the team’s entire OTA and minicamp programs to earn his $250K bonus — not just 90% of those activities, as has been reported elsewhere. Either way, it appears Peterson will forfeit that bonus money, as he did back in 2012 (Twitter link).
- One reason the Bears were willing to roll the dice on Ray McDonald this offseason was the fact that he was a tremendous on-field fit for Vic Fangio‘s scheme, having played under the defensive coordinator in San Francisco. Now that McDonald is no longer in the mix in Chicago, the club will have to turn to Plan B. Jeff Dickerson of ESPNChicago.com and John Mullin of CSNChicago.com examine what that backup plan might look like.
Patriots To Sign Dane Fletcher
The Patriots are bringing back a familiar face, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who reports (via Twitter) that linebacker Dane Fletcher is signing a one-year contract to return to New England. Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com first noted (via Twitter) that Fletcher was in attendance for the start of the team’s OTAs today.
Fletcher, 28, spent four years with the Pats before signing with the Buccaneers as a free agent a year ago. Appearing in all 16 games for Tampa Bay, Fletcher recorded 41 tackles and 0.5 sacks in 2014. While the linebacker logged 358 defensive snaps, he also contributed significantly on special teams, racking up 11 of his tackles in kick and punt coverage.
Reiss reported earlier this month, after Fletcher paid a visit to the Patriots, that there was a “good chance” the former Buc would end up signing with New England. By waiting until after May 12 to complete a deal, the Pats will ensure that Fletcher doesn’t count against their compensatory draft pick formula for 2016.
Top FAs Who Signed One-Year Contracts
Most of this year’s best free agents were able to land multiyear deals that gave them a decent amount of security, with many of those contracts featuring guaranteed money beyond just the first year. A quick look at the top 10 players in our list of 2015’s top 50 free agents shows that nine of them signed for at least five years, while a 10th (Randall Cobb) got a lucrative four-year pact.
However, the 11th player on our list, Greg Hardy, landed just a one-year contract. The fact that Hardy was the top free agent to sign a one-year deal isn’t surprising — his domestic violence case created uncertainty about his stock, and dissuaded any teams from making him a big, long-term offer.
Hardy was far from the only player in our top 50 to sign for just one season, however. While there were at least a couple other players whose stock was affected by off-field question marks, many of these players were coming off injuries or had other issues that impacted their ability to negotiate a long-term deal. Terrance Knighton, for instance, looked like a top-20 free agent based on his 2014 performance, but concerns about his weight scared off many suitors, and he had to settle for a contract that was far from a top-20 valuation.
Some of these deals may backfire — Hardy, for instance, already looks like he may not have been a great investment, since he’s facing a 10-game suspension. But many of these players may turn into great single-season bargains for their respective clubs, who may have gotten discounts based on unfounded concerns. Whether these contracts turn out good or bad, they’ll expire in a year, so none of these teams will see their caps hampered for multiple seasons by these investments.
Here’s the full list of players on our list of top 50 free agents – along with a couple of honorable mentions – who signed one-year contracts this offseason:
- Greg Hardy, DE (Cowboys): $11.312MM base value, $3.218MM cap number ($9.25MM in per-game roster bonuses) *
- Percy Harvin, WR (Bills): $6MM base value, $4MM cap number (two voidable years)
- Nick Fairley, DT (Rams): $5MM base value, $4.75MM cap number *
- Terrance Knighton, DT (Washington): $4.45MM
- Sean Weatherspoon, LB (Cardinals): $3.85MM
- Henry Melton, DT (Buccaneers): $3.75MM *
- Michael Crabtree, WR (Raiders): $3.2MM *
- Rolando McClain, ILB (Cowboys): $3MM base value, $2.813MM cap number *
- Stefen Wisniewski, C (Jaguars): $2MM base value, $2.5MM cap number *
- B.J. Raji, DT (Packers): $1.75MM *
- Stevan Ridley, RB (Jets): $1.25MM base value, $1.031MM cap number
- Joe Barksdale, T (Chargers): $1.095MM *
- Mason Foster, ILB (Bears): Minimum salary benefit, $665K cap number
* Contract also includes incentives
Ray McDonald Arrested Again
2:24pm: In a news release, Lt. Kurt Clarke said that McDonald was arrested after officers said he “physically assaulted the victim while she was holding a baby,” according to the NBC Bay Area report.
12:01pm: Ray McDonald is in legal trouble for the third time since last summer, according to Damian Trujillo of NBC Bay Area, who reports that Santa Clara police arrested McDonald on charges of domestic violence and child endangerment. McDonald was arrested and accused of domestic violence last August, and faced a sexual assault allegation in December, resulting in his release from the 49ers.
The exact date and nature of McDonald’s latest incident isn’t immediately known, but Trujillo writes that two San Jose police sources confirmed on Monday that they assisted the arresting agency (Santa Clara police) with McDonald’s detention. While the investigation into December’s allegation didn’t immediately result in a charge and was said to be ongoing, it doesn’t appear that this arrest is related to that case.
McDonald signed a one-year contract with the Bears earlier this offseason, with team ownership expressing confidence in the defensive lineman’s character after some initial apprehension. The NFL cleared McDonald of any violation of the league’s personal conduct policy relating to last August’s arrest, but had yet to make a decision on December’s accusation, and the 30-year-old’s latest arrest figures to put him in the league’s crosshairs again.
Whether or not the Santa Clara district attorney’s offices decides to pursue a case against McDonald this time around, the Bears may decide to part ways with the embattled defender. Chicago’s agreement with McDonald is a modest $1.05MM deal that doesn’t include any guaranteed money, so it wouldn’t hurt the team’s cap to cut him, if necessary.