Xavien Howard “Dug In” On Contract Issue
Dolphins cornerback Xavien Howard held out of minicamp and appears prepared to stay away from the club until he lands a new contract. As Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes, Howard is “dug in” on the issue, and if he does not get what he wants, the impasse could last well into August.
Howard is coming off a tremendous season, intercepting a league-leading 10 passes (the second time in three seasons he has paced the NFL in INTs), and grading out as the second-best CB in the league per Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics. Though the five-year, $75MM pact Howard signed with the Dolphins in 2019 made him the highest-paid corner in the league at the time, his $15MM AAV is now the sixth-highest mark in football (one spot behind teammate Byron Jones, who is not as good as Howard but who was lucky enough to sign his free agent contract one year later).
So, if Howard had only one or two years left on his deal, a renegotiation would probably be a no-brainer for the Dolphins. But Howard has four years left, and it would set a dangerous precedent to rework a contract with that much time remaining. Plus, under the terms of the new CBA, Miami does have some leverage, as Howard would stand to lose $50K in unforgivable fines for each day of training camp he misses, and if he fails to report on time, he would lose an accrued season towards free agency.
In light of his dominant 2020 campaign, Howard might feel comfortable with those penalties. He may believe that, if the Dolphins won’t pay him, another club will be willing to trade for him and give him the top-of-the-market deal he’s seeking, thereby negating the fines and, perhaps, the free agency issue. However, Miami was justifiably demanding a king’s ransom for Howard at last year’s trade deadline, and it’s unlikely the club will lower its asking price too much.
Dolphins head coach Brian Flores recently acknowledged that Howard’s situation is a “unique” one, but he did not sound especially keen to rework the CB’s existing contract.
Jets OT Chuma Edoga On Roster Bubble
The Jets are nearing a deal with free agent OT Morgan Moses, and assuming the two sides ultimately agree to terms, fellow tackle Chuma Edoga could be looking for a new employer. Per Rich Cimini of ESPN.com, Edoga’s place on New York’s roster is tenuous, and a Moses signing might force him off the squad entirely.
Edoga was part of former GM Mike Maccagnan‘s final draft class in 2019, so the current regime has no real attachment to him. The USC product was named the Jets’ starting right tackle a few weeks into his rookie campaign, and he ultimately started eight games before succumbing to a season-ending MCL injury. New York then added George Fant in free agency last year and selected Mekhi Becton with the No. 11 overall pick of the 2020 draft, so Edoga only saw action on the offensive side of the ball in six games in 2020, including four starts (he lined up exclusively as a special-teamer over the last four weeks of the season).
Pro Football Focus gave him a 61.3 overall grade for his 2020 performance, which would have been near the bottom of the league if he had enough snaps to qualify. So, all things considered, it’s not terribly surprising to learn that he is on the roster bubble. Moses and Becton would represent a solid tackle tandem in support of rookie QB Zach Wilson, and Fant looks a lot better as a swing tackle than he does as a starting option.
However, Edoga was a third-round draft choice not too long ago, and he was generating some interest at last year’s trade deadline. If he is cut, there will be at least a few clubs interested in acquiring him.
Cam Erving To Compete For Panthers’ LT Job
When the Panthers signed OL Cameron Erving in free agency, Erving’s ability to line up at any position on the O-line was cited as one of his best assets. At the time of the signing, Joseph Person of The Athletic suggested that Erving would have a chance to compete for Carolina’s starting LT job, and now that the team’s summer roster is mostly set, Person confirms that Erving is very much in the mix to be Sam Darnold‘s blindside protector.
As Panthers fans know all too well, the team’s left tackle post has been a revolving door for nearly a decade. Whoever wins the job will be Carolina’s ninth LT in as many years, and at first blush, Erving doesn’t look like the long-term solution the Panthers have been seeking. The Browns drafted the Florida State product in the first round of the 2015 draft, but the fact that the Browns flipped him to the Chiefs for a fifth-round pick before his third pro season tells you all you need to know about his tenure in Cleveland.
He ultimately played three seasons in Kansas City, starting 25 games over that span and lining up at left tackle and both guard positions. His play was not good enough to convince the Chiefs to pick up his 2020 option, and he hooked on with the Cowboys last May. Due to multiple knee injuries, he played in just six games (five starts) for Dallas.
As Person notes, Erving missed most of the Panthers’ OTAs and minicamp due to an unspecified injury, though he is expected to be ready to go for the start of training camp. Trenton Scott, who played four games at LT for the Panthers last season, remains in the mix for the starting job in 2021, but he is dealing with an undisclosed injury of his own.
2019 draftees Greg Little and Dennis Daley are also in the running, but Person does not mention third-round rookie Brady Christensen as an LT candidate. Carolina brass was very high on Christensen and targeted him with the No. 60 overall selection before the team got word of the Saints’ interest in WR Terrace Marshall Jr. The Panthers nabbed Marshall at No. 60 and ultimately traded up to land Christensen with the No. 70 overall pick.
However, Scouts Inc. actually had a seventh-round grade on Christensen, and his stature and lack of lateral quickness might make him a better fit at guard at the professional level. At least initially, it seems that the Panthers plan to deploy him on the interior.
No Acrimony Between Patriots, Stephon Gilmore
The Patriots and CB Stephon Gilmore have not made much progress in extension talks, but Mike Reiss of ESPN.com does not believe the relationship between player and team is in a bad place. Reiss says Gilmore enjoys playing for the Pats, wants to remain in Foxborough, and held out of minicamp simply because he believed it was the most effective way to generate productive negotiations.
Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com agrees with Reiss and suggests that a new deal could be in place by the end of the summer (Twitter link). The Patriots did sign Jalen Mills as part of their free agent bonanza and plan to deploy him at corner, but there is a reason Mills’ old team, the Eagles, transitioned him to safety in advance of the 2020 season. He is simply not in Gilmore’s class, and since New England clearly has designs on returning to the playoffs this season, keeping Gilmore in the fold would seem imperative.
But there are complications. Gilmore will turn 31 in September, and though he made the Pro Bowl last season, that bid seemed to be based more on name recognition than anything else. He played in only 11 games due to injury and COVID-19, and Pro Football Focus ranked him just 61st among qualified corners.
On the other hand, he is just one year removed from Defensive Player of the Year honors, and he is not old enough to think he cannot at least come close to replicating that form. His camp has identified Darius Slay‘s three-year, $50MM contract with Philadelphia as a reasonable benchmark, and the fact that Gilmore is not shooting for a top-of-the-market deal suggests that the two sides might be able to find some common ground.
The Patriots still have a fair amount of cap space to work with, so Gilmore’s $16MM+ cap number for 2021 probably doesn’t bother them too much. Perhaps a front-loaded deal that gives Gilmore a nice influx of cash while providing New England with some flexibility after the upcoming season would make sense.
Latest On Deshaun Watson Settlement Talks
Tony Buzbee, the attorney representing the 22 women who have filed lawsuits against Texans QB Deshaun Watson, said back in May that his clients would not agree to a settlement with Watson. Shortly thereafter, Watson’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, said that Buzbee had indeed approached him about a settlement, but that settlement is not an option unless “the terms are made public and all participants are allowed to speak in their own defense at all times.”
Several days ago, Buzbee once again took to Instagram to discuss the matter. He said, “there will not be a settlement, at least anytime soon. I have my best people on the case. That should tell you a lot about our intentions. … our team is doing what it takes in discovery and prep to try these cases to a jury. The press folks say we’ve gone ‘quiet,’ but the truth is we made clear early on that we wouldn’t try these cases in the press and now are doing the important work required for our clients to try these cases to a jury.”
As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes, Hardin and Buzbee have privately discussed a settlement, but those talks broke down due to Buzbee’s unwillingness to waive confidentiality and make the terms of a settlement public. Florio believes that Buzbee is prepared to settle and that the general parameters of an agreement — including the amount of money Watson is willing to pay out — are in place, but that Buzbee still wants to keep the settlement confidential and is insisting he is prepared to try the case in an effort to get Hardin to change his stance. For his part, Hardin says there are no active settlement talks at the moment (via Courtney Zubowski of KPRC-TV).
For most observers, the football side of this matter is still on the backburner, but for the Texans, Watson, and any teams that might want to trade for the three-time Pro Bowler, it is very much a pressing issue. The NFL’s investigation is ongoing, but Florio believes the league must make a decision as to whether it will place Watson on the Commissioner’s Exempt list as soon as possible to be fair to all parties involved. Despite everything else that has happened since his trade demand earlier this year, Watson still wants to be traded and remains interested in the Broncos, though Denver reportedly would prefer to swing a deal for Packers QB Aaron Rodgers.
However, it’s unclear when the NFL might make a decision with respect to Watson’s playing eligibility. According to Hardin, the league has not even spoken to his client yet.
The criminal investigation into Watson is also ongoing.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/16/21
The Seahawks made today’s only minor moves:
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: TE Dominick Wood-Anderson
- Waived: RB B.J. Emmons
Latest On Titans LT Taylor Lewan
We heard several weeks ago that Titans left tackle Taylor Lewan, whose 2020 season was cut short due to an ACL tear in October, was on track to return for training camp. That might not be the case, however.
As Kayla Anderson of WKRN.com writes, Lewan — who turns 30 next month — hopes to be ready for the start of the regular season. “I could sit here and predict a bunch of things, but you never know what can happen in these next six to seven weeks,” he said. “I expect it to go swimmingly, smooth, but you never know what could happen.”
Lewan said that he’s pleased with the way his rehab is progressing, but there is no definitive timetable at this point. Tennessee expects to have a powerhouse offense in 2021, and having its three-time Pro Bowler anchoring the blindside for the full season would be a major boost to the club’s championship aspirations.
Lewan signed a five-year, $80MM extension in July 2018, which positioned him as the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history at the time. He rewarded the Titans with a Pro Bowl effort that season, but due to the ACL tear and a PED suspension, he has played in just 17 of a possible 32 games over the past two years.
Baker Mayfield “In No Rush” To Sign Extension
Browns QB Baker Mayfield is under club control through the 2022 season after Cleveland exercised the fifth-year option of his rookie contract earlier this year. That option is worth a fully-guaranteed $18.858MM, a healthy sum to be sure, but there are 14 quarterbacks making more than that on an annual basis.
Still, Mayfield doesn’t sound too concerned about when he will secure his place among the league’s high rollers. The No. 1 overall pick of the 2018 draft told reporters today, “I’m in no rush because I’m just trying to win games. Like I said, it’ll handle itself. I’m sure [agents] Tom and Jack Mills are handling that. I don’t try and feed too much into that because it’s like wasting my time and energy and thought process on things I’m not in control of right now. So I’m going to handle what I can control” (via Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk).
The last we heard, the Browns had not yet initiated extension talks with Mayfield’s camp. Owner Jimmy Haslam, however, made it clear that his team has every intention of keeping Mayfield in Cleveland for the long haul, which is why the Browns — a trendy Super Bowl pick — are not interested in disgruntled Packers star Aaron Rodgers.
Both sides do have reason to wait, though. After all, Mayfield was a mess in his sophomore campaign, and while he appears to have righted the ship under the steady hand of head coach Kevin Stefanski last season, the Browns might want him to prove that he can sustain his success. And Mayfield — who said today that he has no problems betting on himself — may prefer to have 2018 draftmates Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen ink their big-money extensions first.
Barring an All-Pro type season, Mayfield is unlikely to earn as much on his next contract as Jackson and Allen will on theirs, but their deals will still help push Mayfield’s price point a little higher.
Le’Veon Bell: “I’ll Never Play For Andy Reid Again”
Le’Veon Bell wants to continue his playing career in 2021, but he’s not exactly endearing himself to teams that might be interested in his services. Bell commented on a recent Instagram post by RapTV — a post concerning someone’s outlandish McDonald’s bill — and fellow commenters began asking him questions about his NFL future (h/t Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk).
In one of his responses, Bell said, “I’ll never play for [Chiefs head coach] Andy Reid again. I’d retire first.” Of course, Bell joined up with Reid’s Chiefs following his release from the Jets last October, and he ended up appearing in nine regular season games (two starts). He tallied 63 carries for 254 yards (4.0 YPC), and added 13 catches for 99 yards. However, he did not see the field in the AFC Championship game or the Super Bowl.
The nature of Bell’s beef with Reid is unclear, though the coach’s decision to keep him on the sidelines for KC’s two biggest postseason contests probably explains some (or all) of the animosity. Still, publicly airing grievances against one of the most respected and affable head coaches in the league is probably not in Bell’s best interests.
He recently cited his lack of usage with the Jets as the reason for his regression from his halcyon days in Pittsburgh, though his 311 touches in 2019 — his first and only full season in the Meadowlands — were the eighth-highest total in the league that year. He was tremendous with the Steelers in 2017, piling up nearly 2,000 scrimmage yards and 11 TDs en route to his second First Team All-Pro bid, but he sat out all of 2018 due to his infamous contract dispute with Pittsburgh, so he is now three years removed from his best work. As far as we know, neither the Chiefs nor any other club have expressed interest in Bell in 2021.
Obviously, Bell’s underwhelming performance with the Jets is at least partly attributable to the dearth of offensive talent on Gang Green’s roster (including the O-line), and the fact that he is still only 29 and hasn’t run up the odometer too much in recent years theoretically makes him an attractive option for any number of clubs. His inability to generate any interest on the open market could be indicative of what teams think about his fit in a locker room, and comments like those he made about Reid aren’t helping his cause.
No Contract Talks Between Dolphins, LB Jerome Baker
2018 third-rounder Jerome Baker has quietly turned himself into a solid starting linebacker for the Dolphins. He has averaged 119 tackles over the past two seasons, and he even displayed some real pass-rushing chops in 2020, compiling seven sacks.
The Ohio State product is entering the final year of his rookie deal, but it doesn’t sound as if there have been any substantive contract talks between player and team at this point. When asked if the Dolphins had approached him about a long-term accord, Baker said, “I guess? We haven’t really talked about anything. We’re just going into this year” (via Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald).
Baker is due to earn $2.433MM in 2021, though he would surely love a multi-year deal with an eight-figure average annual value. His new running mate at inside linebacker, Benardrick McKinney, has a $10MM AAV — which positions him just outside the top-10 for ILBs — and given Baker’s performance to date and potential for further growth, that seems like a fair starting point in negotiations.
Still, Baker understands that there are things he can work on. Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics painted him as a fairly average defender in 2020, and he received a subpar 47.4 mark in run defense. As Beasley points out, Baker missed 10 tackles last season, though those deficiencies were largely counterbalanced by his improvements in coverage and the pass rush.
“I definitely look myself in the mirror and know what I need to do to get better,” Baker said. “For me, locking in on the run game, being one of those linebackers that secures the inside, not just in the pass game but in the run game.”
He added that he would be perfectly content to continue his career in South Beach. “I want to play here the rest of my career. I love it here. I love the fans, I love the organization. I love everyone here. I can definitely see myself playing here a long time. … The contract stuff’s the contract stuff. I really don’t care for that right now.”
We heard earlier this year that it could be extension-or-bust for Baker and the Dolphins, as the club is unlikely to use the franchise tag on him in 2022.