49ers In Talks With Brandon Lloyd
After voluntarily sitting out the 2013 season, veteran wideout Brandon Lloyd may be mulling the possibility of returning for 2014. According to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com, the 49ers have engaged in talks with Lloyd about a potential comeback.
Lloyd, who is just two years removed from a 74-catch season, reportedly received inquiries from at least six teams last fall, including the 49ers, but rejected all overtures. A Pro Football Talk report at the time suggested Lloyd was “neither physically nor mentally ready” to continue his playing career at that point, so we’ll have to see if the 32-year-old has changed that stance.
As for the 49ers, they pursued receivers like Julian Edelman and Emmanuel Sanders earlier in the offseason, but were only able to lock up their own free agent wideout, Anquan Boldin. That leaves San Francisco with a solid 1-2 punch of Boldin and Michael Crabtree, but the club is clearly looking for alternatives at the No. 3 spot. If Lloyd were to sign with the Niners, he would presumably have the upper hand for that third receiver role over players like Quinton Patton and Jonathan Baldwin.
Panthers Sign Colin Cole To One-Year Deal
THURSDAY, 9:37am: Cole’s one-year contract with the Panthers, which is now official, has a total base value of $1.125MM, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun, who breaks down the specifics via Twitter.
TUESDAY, 4:23pm: The Panthers have agreed to terms with Colin Cole, and will bring the veteran defensive tackle back to Carolina on a one-year deal, reports Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer (via Twitter).
A Toronto native, the 33-year-old Cole was a starter for the Seahawks in 2009 and 2010 before being out of the NFL for two years due in part to ankle problems. Cole returned to the field in 2013 for the Panthers, starting 13 games for the team and appearing in 335 defensive snaps.
Although he ranked in the bottom 10 qualified defensive tackles according to Pro Football Focus’ grades (subscription required), Cole will likely be relied upon as a depth piece on Carolina’s line, and figures to play a part-time role for the club once again in 2014.
South Notes: Jaguars, Texans, Falcons
The Jaguars have been at the center of a number of NFL stories this week, with the team reportedly on the verge of signing Alex Mack to a five-year offer sheet and hosting some of 2014’s biggest prospects on pre-draft visits this week. Jacksonville continues to pop up in the news cycle, with the team playing a part in a couple of our late-afternoon updates out of the NFL’s South divisions. Let’s dive in….
- Offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger, who re-signed with the Chargers today, drew interest from the Jaguars before he agreed to return to San Diego, tweets Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. It’s not likely that the Jags viewed Ohrnberger and Mack as equal commodities, but perhaps missing out on the former prompted the team to push harder to finalize an offer sheet with the latter.
- Add LSU running back Jeremy Hill to the list of prospects visiting the Jaguars tomorrow, says Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (via Twitter).
- Notre Dame defensive end Stephon Tuitt, who met with the Jags today, will visit the Texans tomorrow, according to Gil Brandt of NFL.com (via Twitter).
- The Falcons have a visit lined up for next Wednesday with BYU outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy, tweets Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com.
Minor Moves: Scales, Dombrowski, Bunkley
Here’s a round-up of today’s more minor transactions, including contract restructures or signings and cuts involving players without much NFL experience:
- After signing him to a futures contract in January, the Buccaneers have waived long snapper Patrick Scales, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). The move opens the door for Jeremy Cain to handle snaps for the Bucs in 2014.
Earlier updates:
- Former Harvard punter Jake Dombrowski has signed with the Bills, according to his agency’s Facebook page (hat tip to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun). The team has since confirmed the move in a press release. Dombrowski will provide some camp competition at the position for veteran punter Brian Moorman.
- Saints defensive lineman Brodrick Bunkley has reworked his contract to help make room for the team’s latest signees, Rafael Bush and Champ Bailey, tweets Joel Corry of CBSSports.com. According to Corry, Bunkley cut his 2014 salary down to $1.65MM in exchange for a guaranteed $300K roster bonus, creating $2.85MM in cap savings for the club.
Extra Points: Carr, Johnson, Bailey, Bills
Although multiple reports have suggested that free agent signal-caller David Carr would like to end up on the team that drafts his brother Derek Carr, perhaps serving as Derek’s backup, that’s not necessarily the case, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Schefter tweets that the two brothers’ destinations aren’t related, and that David intends to sign with a club prior to draft day.
As the elder Carr continues to search for a new home, let’s round up a handful of updates from around the NFL….
- Free agent running back Chris Johnson could theoretically try out for teams in private, without those workouts needing to be reported, but he doesn’t intend to do so, a league source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. As Florio notes, it’s possible that Johnson could reach an agreement with a new team without even visiting that club, since the veteran is a known commodity at this point.
- All NFL 32 teams were in attendance at LSU’s Pro Day today, including several general managers and head coaches, tweets Albert Breer of the NFL Network.
- The details of Champ Bailey‘s two-year contract with the Saints have surfaced, and Joel Corry of CBSSports.com provides the breakdown (Twitter links): The base value is $3.75MM, though it can be worth up to $6.75MM with incentives and escalators. It’s guaranteed for $500K and includes a $250K roster bonus if Bailey is on the team for six games in 2014.
- The Bills announced today that Texas A&M offensive tackle Jake Matthews and Louisville linebacker Preston Brown were in town to meet with the team.
- Top cornerback prospect Justin Gilbert of Oklahoma State will visit the Titans on Friday, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (via Twitter).
- Boise State wide receiver Geraldo Boldewijn, who was in New England today for a private workout, will visit the Cardinals on April 15, reports Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). The Cards are also hosting Memphis safety Lonnie Ballentine today, tweets James Walker of ESPN.com.
- The Packers will host Washington State offensive lineman John Fullington for an official pre-draft visit next week, tweets agent Collin Roberts.
Bengals Re-Sign Dane Sanzenbacher
WEDNESDAY, 1:42pm: Sanzenbacher’s one-year deal with the Bengals is actually worth $1.2MM, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). It consists of a $950K base salary, a $200K signing bonus, and a $50K workout bonus.
The figures are interesting, since the Bengals’ original RFA tender to Sanzenbacher was worth $1.431MM. At some point, the club may have rescinded that offer and negotiated a smaller salary with the receiver.
TUESDAY, 1:56pm: The Bengals have re-signed wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher, according to the team (Twitter link). Sanzenbacher, a restricted free agent had received a $1.431MM tender from the Bengals last month, so he has likely accepted and signed that offer.
Sanzenbacher, who caught 27 balls during his rookie season with the Bears, has just seven receptions in the two years since then. However, he may earn a more significant role in the Bengals’ offense for 2014, considering the club lost Andrew Hawkins in free agency.
It took a little longer for Sanzenbacher’s contract situation to be resolved than it did for Cincinnati’s other two restricted free agents. Vincent Rey officially re-signed with the Bengals shortly after free agency opened, while Hawkins signed a lucrative offer sheet with the Browns that went unmatched by Cincinnati.
Chargers Re-Sign Rich Ohrnberger
The Chargers have officially re-signed offensive lineman Rich Ohrnberger to a one-year contract, the team announced today (via Twitter). The guard/center had been an unrestricted free agent.
Ohrnberger, 28, has spent time with the Patriots, Cardinals, and Chargers since being selected by New England in the fourth round of the 2009 draft. Although he started one game for San Diego last season, Ohrnberger has primarily served as a depth piece for the interior offensive line. In 2013, he played 161 regular-season offensive snaps for the Chargers.
Ohrnberger was said to be drawing interest as a potential starting guard or center at the start of free agency, but he’ll likely return to a part-time role in San Diego. Prior to agreeing to sign with the Chargers, the Penn State product visited the Jets.
NFC Notes: Rams, Bucs, Eagles, Packers
Speaking to Curtis Crabtree of Pro Football Talk, Seahawks tight end Zach Miller suggested he had been willing to accept a pay cut this offseason because he was open to doing whatever it took to remain in Seattle. Miller’s restructure reduced the veteran’s overall compensation for 2014 and 2015.
“I’ve been around long enough that I know the business of the NFL,” Miller said. “It’s something you hear rumors about. You never know until you hear from the horse’s mouth. I’m just happy to be back. Love to be on this team, love playing with these guys. For me, it never was a question of being anywhere else, I wanted to be here.”
Here’s more from around the NFC:
- After he visits the Jaguars, Clemson wideout Sammy Watkins will meet with the Rams, then has a private workout lined up with St. Louis on April 18, says ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).
- The Buccaneers are hosting Marshall left tackle Garrett Scott for a pre-draft visit today, tweets Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. However, the more noteworthy visit for the Bucs looks like it’ll come tomorrow, as Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune says (via Twitter) Johnny Manziel will be in town to meet with the club.
- USC receiver Marqise Lee has met with the Eagles multiple times already, and will pay an official visit to the team this week, tweets Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com.
- According to Jason Wilde of ESPNWisconsin.com, the Packers maintain interest in a few of their unsigned free agents, including tight end Jermichael Finley and defensive linemen Johnny Jolly and Ryan Pickett.
Jaguars Notes: Mack, Watkins, Clowney
The Jaguars are still contemplating extending an offer sheet to free agent center Alex Mack, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Because Mack is the Browns’ transition player, the team would have the opportunity to match a Jacksonville offer, and as Kabot details, it sounds like team owner Jimmy Haslam is leaning that way.
“We remain optimistic that Alex Mack will be a Cleveland Brown for a long time,” Haslam said yesterday. “We want him to be. I think we’ve made it very clear that he’s the kind of person, the kind of player we want in our organization.”
As the Jaguars continue to mull an offer for the standout center, we’ll check in on one idea for how they could structure their offer, along with a few more draft-related updates out of Jacksonville…
- Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com spoke to several agents and executives to try to get an idea of how the Jaguars could structure a contract for Mack that would make the Browns reluctant to match it. The best suggestion he heard involved a two-year deal with a base salary of $10MM for year one, and $1MM for year two, with a $15MM roster bonus early in that second year.
- The specific dollar figures on that potential Mack offer aren’t as important as the structure — the Jags could conceivably restructure the deal in the second year to convert the big roster bonus into a more cap-friendly signing bonus, and the Browns would be reluctant to match since they’d be paying a premium annual salary for just two years of Mack. Additionally, if Cleveland were to match such an offer and then release Mack before his second-year roster bonus, the team wouldn’t receive future compensation when he signed elsewhere.
- It’s a big week of pre-draft visits for the Jaguars, and we can add a few more notable names to the list of prospects who will be in town. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Clemson receiver Sammy Watkins will visit the Jags tomorrow, while Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union tweets that South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney will arrive in town tonight.
- More pre-draft visits in Jacksonville: According to Peter Schrager of Fox Sports (via Twitter), Texas A&M wideout Mike Evans is visiting the Jaguars today, and O’Halloran reports (via Twitter) that Alabama signal-caller A.J. McCarron will meet with the club tomorrow.
Contract Details: Avant, Wilson, Lowery, Jean
Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun and the National Football Post has passed along this several contract details on deals signed within the last few days. While most contracts being signed these days are minimum salary pacts, that’s not the case for all of them, and even some of those minimum deals include bonuses of varying amounts. Let’s turn to Wilson for a few of the latest updates (all links go to Twitter)….
- Jason Avant‘s one-year deal with the Panthers includes a minimum base salary of $855K, but doesn’t qualify as a minimum salary benefit contract because his bonuses exceed $65K — Avant got $150K for signing, and will also be eligible for a $45K workout bonus, bringing the total value to $1.05MM.
- The Falcons signed a pair of defensive backs yesterday, and both players received minimum salary benefit deals. Cornerback Josh Wilson got a $65K signing bonus on his minimum contract, while safety Dwight Lowery received a $30K bonus on his one-year pact, meaning their respective cap hits are $635K and $600K.
- Lestar Jean‘s one-year, minimum-salary deal with the Vikings has the usual minimum salary benefit cap number of $635K, but took a different route to get there. In addition to his $570K base salary, Jean receives a $10K signing bonus and is eligible for a $55K roster bonus, meaning his contract doesn’t technically qualify as a minimum salary benefit deal, even though the cap hit is identical.
- Finally, one last contract update comes courtesy of Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com, who notes that Brian De La Puente is actually receiving one dollar more than a minimum salary deal would be worth. Because he’s not technically a minimum salary player, De La Puente is eligible to re-up with the Bears before free agency begins next season for a salary worth more than the minimum.