Adrian Peterson Rumors: Saturday
Last we heard out of Minnesota, the Vikings were intent on keeping Adrian Peterson. However, there are still many details that need to be worked out before the two sides can come together again. Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports provides some insight into Peterson’s possibilities.
Here are some recent updates revolving around Peterson’s situation:
- Although the Vikings may want to see Peterson in purple in 2015, the star running back is still not happy in Minnesota, according to Robinson (via Twitter).
- Robinson adds that if Peterson does land on the trading block that the Cardinals would likely offer a high draft pick for his services.
- Robinson also writes that once teams start making trade offers, that the Vikings should be able to get at least a second-round pick for Peterson (via Twitter).
- As for the oft-rumored Cowboys’ potential interest, Robinson believes that Peterson is not in their plans (via Twitter). He does not expect the Cowboys to join in the bidding.
Thursday Roundup: Weddle, Peterson, Harvin
The Chargers still have over $21MM in cap space, and could look to spend that money to add to the team this offseason. Meanwhile, star safety Eric Weddle is coming into the last year of his contract and is unsure of his future with the team, writes Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com.
“I think I’ve earned [a new deal],” Weddle said. “But it has to work both ways. They have to want it, too. And if they don’t, then we will play it out and I’ll be a free agent next year “I want to be here, but I understand the situation and what they want to do. If I’m a part of it — great. If not, then I plan on making this season a memorable one and we’ll see what happens from there.”
- The Vikings are focused on keeping Adrian Peterson, not trading him, writes Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune. But Vensel’s colleague at the Star Tribune, Michael Rand, believes the stars are aligning for the Cowboys to make a trade for Peterson.
- Percy Harvin has finished his visit with the Bills, and he is mulling other possible visits, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (via Twitter). La Canfora adds that the Harvin situation could begin to wrap itself up as early as this weekend.
- Brian Orakpo is in Tennessee on a visit and is planning to meet with the Cardinals next. However, he might not make it to Arizona if the Titans can get a deal in place before he leaves tonight, writes John Keim of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
- Shelley Smith has left Seattle without a deal and will now visit the Broncos, tweets Mike Klis of the Denver Post.
- Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star looks ahead to the rest of the Colts‘ offseason, noting that the team has already made its big splashes with the additions of Andre Johnson, Trent Cole, and Frank Gore. However, Holder expects Indianapolis to perhaps add a safety like Louis Delmas or Kendrick Lewis and/or an offensive lineman in the second wave of free agency, when better bargains can be had. The Colts currently have around $15-16MM in available cap space.
- 49ers GM Trent Baalke does not appear especially concerned about losing last year’s starting cornerbacks Chris Culliver and Perrish Cox should those two players sign elsewhere in free agency. As Cam Inman of the San Jose Mercury News writes, Baalke is confident that the team has capable internal options to fill the void.
Rory Parks contributed to this post.
Rams To Sign Akeem Ayers
8:28pm: Ayers’ deal is for $6MM, with $3MM guaranteed, tweets Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. It could reach as much as $10MM with incentives.
7:19pm: The Rams have agreed to terms on a two-year contract with linebacker Akeem Ayers, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter).
The coaching staff has familiarity with the former Titan, writes Nick Wagoner of ESPN (via Twitter). Head coach Jeff Fisher never overlapped with Ayers tenure, but Gregg Williams and Frank Bush both spent time with him in Tennessee.
Ayers experienced success in 2014 after being acquired by the Patriots via trade midseason. The team was able to move on from him without hesitation after signing Jabaal Sheard, who Ben Volin of the Boston Globe considers an upgrade at the position (via Twitter).
Extra Points: Mariota, Richardson, Culliver
The Jets have scheduled a pre-draft visit with Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post (on Twitter). Mariota says he’ll be meeting with the Bucs, Eagles and Titans at his pro day, Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter) adds. Mariota’s pro day performance was underwhelming, Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean tweets, though as we saw last year with Teddy Bridgewater, we shouldn’t necessarily put a ton of stock into that. More from around the NFL..
- After being officially waived by the Colts earlier, Trent Richardson gave an explanation for why it didn’t work out in Indianapolis, according to Mike Wells of ESPN (via Twitter). “Me and the GM didn’t see eye to eye,” said Richardson. “My next step, I’ll be the starter. Indy didn’t fit me.” The embattled halfback also confirmed that he was continually fined by the organization for being overweight (via Twitter). Richardson had told head coach Chuck Pagano he would have flown himself to New England for the AFC Championship game, but was told he would inactive regardless (via Twitter).
- Long snapper James Winchester joined the Chiefs despite three other teams competing to sign him, writes Terez Paylor of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). The Chiefs now have three long snappers on the roster.
- Washington is bringing in cornerback Chris Culliver for a visit, writes Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (via Twitter). However, La Canfora warns that a return to the 49ers for Culliver should not be ruled out, and that his value is rising with fewer top cornerbacks left on the market (via Twitter).
- While both Shelley Smith and Stefen Wisniewski visited with the Seahawks, neither offensive lineman is expected to sign today, reports Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times (via Twitter).
- The 49ers have not closed the door on bringing Stevie Johnson back, a source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (on Twitter). San Francisco released Johnson earlier this week after signing Torrey Smith, but it sounds like they might consider bringing him back at a cheaper rate.
Browns Interested In Dwayne Bowe, Stevie Johnson
The Browns have expressed interest in adding another receiver into the depth chart, writes Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (via Twitter). Two names La Canfora gives as possible targets are Stevie Johnson and Dwayne Bowe.
Johnson was recently released from the 49ers after the two sides were unable to come to an agreement on a pay cut. Johnson was productive at times in limited snaps, but was anonymous for large stretches of times last season. He still managed to haul in 35 passes for 435 yards and three touchdowns. The 28-year old pass catcher had his best stretch from 2010-2012, when he caught 237 passes for more than 3,000 yards and 23 touchdowns over a three-year stretch.
Bowe, who has ties to Browns general manager Ray Farmer from Farmer’s time with the Chiefs, is also definitely viewed as a potential commodity by the Browns, according to Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (via Twitter). Bowe was released by the Chiefs to make room for the signing of Jeremy Maclin. A former first-round pick out of LSU, Bowe also experienced his best three-year stretch between 2010 and 2012, but since his breakout 15 touchdown 2010 campaign, he has only caught 13 touchdowns in the last four seasons despite remaining relatively healthy throughout. He also headlined a group of receivers that failed to catch a single touchdown in 2014, which does not help his value.
Chiefs To Sign Paul Fanaika
The Chiefs have signed guard Paul Fanaika to a three-year deal worth $8.1MM, reports Terez Paylor of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). The 28-year-old started 30 games with the Cardinals over the past two seasons.
Fanaika struggled in 2014, grading in as the 41st out 44 guards to play at least 75% of his team’s snaps, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). He was not necessarily a shoe-in for a starting job, but the contract with the Chiefs suggests he will get every chance to get the starting spot.
Paylor noted that Fanaika was a mainstay at right guard, while newly acquired Ben Grubbs played left guard for the Saints. Both could be plugged into the Chiefs’ offensive line, writes Paylor (via Twitter). He wonders what this means for Jeff Allen‘s future with the team. Allen only played one game in 2014, stepping in at right tackle.
Chiefs Sign Jeremy Maclin
12:01pm: The Chiefs have officially signed Maclin, the team confirmed in a press release. The announcement should pave the way for Bowe’s release.
WEDNESDAY, 10:03am: The Chiefs are working on their cap situation before officially signing Maclin to his new deal, according to Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com, who tweets that the five-year deal will be worth $55MM, including $22.5MM in guarantees. The wideout will receive $13MM in year one, tweets McLane.
MONDAY, 8:41am: A source tells Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link) that Maclin will receive $11MM per year, or close to it, on his deal with the Chiefs. The wideout got more than Cobb’s $10MM annual salary, McLane’s source confirms.
SUNDAY, 7:36pm: The Chiefs have agreed to terms on a deal with wide receiver Jeremy Maclin, reports Chris Mortensen of ESPN (via Twitter). Maclin will reunite with his former coach Andy Reid and join a team that did not complete a touchdown pass to a wide receiver last year.
Mortensen writes that the team will likely have to clear up cap space in order to make the deal official, and the logical move would be to cut Dwayne Bowe before Tuesday (via Twitter).
Maclin is coming off a breakout season in which he caught 85 passes for more than 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Details of the contract have not yet been released.
Patriots Re-Sign Devin McCourty
WEDNESDAY, 10:27am: McCourty’s signing is now official, tweets Volin.
SUNDAY, 9:40pm: The Patriots have been in the driver’s seat in terms of retaining Pro Bowl safety Devin McCourty, and it looks like he will be returning to New England on a new deal, reports Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports 1 (via Twitter).
Ian Rapoport of NFL.com has confirmed the report (via Twitter). McCourty will sign a five-year deal worth $47.5MM, according to Rapoport (via Twitter). He also writes that McCourty turned down larger offers to remain with the team. Mike Reiss of ESPN adds that the deal includes $28.5MM in guaranteed money (via Twitter).
McCourty was the top safety on the market and had drawn tremendous interest around the league. The Jaguars, Eagles, and Giants all made hard pushes to sign the play making free safety.
Other interested teams have been notified that McCourty plans to return to the Patriots, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN (via Twitter). The team will likely turn all of its attention to working out a long-term deal for Darrelle Revis. Keeping both Revis and McCourty will ensure a successful offseason for the Patriots, writes Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (via Twitter).
Volin writes that the deal is not finalized, but that McCourty will be back with the Patriots in 2015 (via Twitter).
With McCourty off the market, Ron Parker and Rahim Moore jump to the top of the list of free agent safeties. The market for those players should heat up quickly, writes Rand Getlin of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter).
Eagles Re-Sign Mark Sanchez
WEDNESDAY, 7:08am: The Eagles’ two-year deal with Sanchez is now official, according to the team (Twitter link).
SUNDAY, 6:17pm: The Eagles are re-signing quarterback Mark Sanchez, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). The Jon and Sean Show were first to report the signing (via Twitter).
He will return to the team on a two-year contract worth $9MM with $5.5MM guaranteed, according to Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports 1 (via Twitter). The deal has a maximum value of $16MM over the two years with incentives (via Twitter).
Sanchez played nine games for the team in 2014, with mixed results. He completed over 64% of his passes, averaging 268 yards per game with a 14 to 11 touchdown to interception ratio.
The signing has led some fans and pundits to strengthen the connection between the team and an interest in Marcus Mariota. The high salary for Sanchez and the starter incentives push Jeff McLane of Philly.com to opine that it might signal the end of Nick Foles as the team’s starter and instead point to a Sanchez-Mariota duo.
Dolphins Release Philip Wheeler
TUESDAY, 5:13pm: The Dolphins made Wheeler’s release official today, posting the news on the team’s Twitter account.
SATURDAY, 2:33pm: The Dolphins have decided to release linebacker Philip Wheeler, designating him as a post-June 1st release, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN (via Twitter).
Wheeler played less than 400 snaps for the team in 2014, and has generally been thought of as a disappointment since signing with the team in 2013.
James Walker of ESPN writes that Wheeler struggled versus both the run and the pass in 2014, and that opposing teams recognized him as a liability on defense (via Twitter).
By designating him as a post-June 1st cut the team will be able to save $3MM on their salary cap this offseason, according to OverTheCap.com.