Latest On Browns S Grant Delpit
The Browns snagged LSU safety Grant Delpit with the No. 44 overall pick of last year’s draft, which looked to be something of a steal considering Delpit’s upside. Unfortunately, the winner of the 2019 Jim Thorpe Award suffered a torn Achilles during the first week of training camp last August, thereby ending his rookie season before it could even begin.
To help fill the void, Cleveland traded for young Jaguars safety Ronnie Harrison, and it had signed Andrew Sendejo before the Delpit injury. Sendejo, however, was one of the worst safeties in the league in 2020 according to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics, and he remains a free agent. The Browns did sign former Ram John Johnson in free agency last month, and between him, Harrison — who was PFF’s ninth-best safety — and Delpit, Cleveland will have a young and talented safety corps for defensive coordinator Joe Woods to work with.
But it will still be a while before Delpit can return to the field. The 22-year-old tells Anthony Poisal of the team’s official website that he is a few months away from full medical clearance. “I’ve put so many hours in the weight room,” he said. “That’s just part of life when you’re playing in the league. I’m doing everything I can to get on the field.”
As Poisal writes, Delpit’s recovery timeline should allow him to be ready for the start of training camp. It’s hard to speculate on what his role might be until he gets a couple of weeks of work under him, but his coverage abilities and physicality suggest that he will be a major factor on a team that has made a number of additions to the defensive side of the ball this offseason and that is looking to build on its most successful season since it rejoined the NFL in 1999.
Steelers To Draft RB In First Or Second Round
Given that their running back room is currently comprised of Benny Snell, Anthony McFarland, and free agent signee Kalen Ballage, we expected that the Steelers would be on the lookout for running back help in the draft. And as Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes, GM Kevin Colbert will indeed select a collegiate running back, and he will most likely do so in the first round.
Running back is no longer seen as a position that must be filled with a first-round draft choice, unless the prospect in question is an obvious Pro Bowl talent. But while the Steelers’ league-worst rushing total of 1,351 yards in 2020 could be at least partially explained by the pass-heavy offense quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was operating, the team wasn’t effective when it did choose to run the ball. Pittsburgh’s 3.6 YPC average was also the worst mark in the NFL, so it’s clear that a major upgrade is in order.
Three-year starter James Conner recently signed with the Cardinals, and while he received a modest contract from Arizona, the Steelers — who are revamping their rushing attack under new OC Matt Canada and new OL coach Adrian Klemm — simply wanted to go in a different direction. Plus, Conner is not necessarily the explosive player that Pittsburgh believes it can land in the draft.
With the No. 24 overall selection, the Steelers should have a shot at at least one of the top two RBs in this year’s draft: Alabama’s Najee Harris and Clemson’s Travis Etienne. Harris is a powerful runner who is just as effective between the tackles as he is on the perimeter, and he has developed into a reliable receiver over the course of his collegiate career. Etienne, meanwhile, is a threat to break off a big play whenever he touches the ball, and he would make an excellent chess piece for Canada as he seeks to exploit favorable matchups against opposing defenses.
Dulac says that if the Steelers pass on an RB in the first round, they will certainly grab one in the second. Top Day 2 prospects include UNC’s Javonte Williams — who probably won’t fall to Pittsburgh’s second-round choice at No. 55 overall — fellow Tar Heel Michael Carter, and Ohio State’s Trey Sermon.
49ers Open To Drafting Trey Lance?
The 49ers have been most heavily connected to Alabama quarterback Mac Jones, and many expect John Lynch & Co. to nab the Crimson Tide passer when they are on the clock with the No. 3 overall pick. But Trey Lance‘s Pro Day is tomorrow, and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com says the Niners are heading into Lance’s showcase with a completely open mind (video link).
Fowler goes on to say that Lance could swing the pendulum in his favor if he performs well. As reported previously, the North Dakota State product will run drills that are favored by 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan in an effort to show that he can thrive in a system that on the surface appears to be best-suited to Jones. He will also have NFL staffers running his throwing session as opposed to his own coaches.
San Francisco attended Justin Fields‘ Pro Day earlier this week — his workout was also tailored to the 49ers’ system — and Shanahan has spoken with Fields’ pre-draft coach, John Beck, multiple times this offseason. According to Fowler, Fields was able to allay concerns that the Niners and other clubs have with respect to his decision-making ability with intelligent Zoom meetings where he discussed his thought processes and his gameday preparation.
Fowler sort of implies, however, that Fields is not really in the mix for the No. 3 pick, saying that if the 49ers don’t pick him, it’s not because they don’t like him, it’s because they love someone else. But on a recent segment on VSin, former NFL executive Michael Lombardi offers a much more straightforward take. Lombardi’s sources tell him that if San Francisco does not draft Jones, then Lance will be the pick, not Fields (video link).
Either way, none of those three signal-callers will have to wait too long to hear their names called. With a number of QB-needy clubs holding picks that put them in range for a player like Jones, Lance, or Fields — or at least make a trade up a reasonable proposition — we are expecting five signal-callers to be off the board within the first 10-12 selections.
Tyler Lockett Wants To Finish Career With Seahawks
Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett just signed a lucrative contract extension that will take him through the 2025 season, but he already knows how he would like his playing career to end. The 28-year-old wideout told reporters during a meeting with media yesterday that he wants to finish his career with the ‘Hawks (via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times).
“I would love to finish my career as a Seattle Seahawk,” Lockett said. “That’s why I said it was an amazing feeling that they even wanted to keep me on the team even longer. … To just to be able to see how they feel about me, understand how they feel about me, it brings that type of feeling to me that, you know, they want me here just as much as I want to be here.”
The latest extension represents Lockett’s third contract with the team, and as Condotta points out, he is now the only player on Seattle’s roster signed past the 2023 season. He would have been eligible for free agency at the end of the 2021 campaign, but the new deal gave him $37MM in fully-guaranteed cash while lowering his cap hit for this year, so it was a beneficial transaction for both player and team.
Lockett’s warm and fuzzy feelings towards Seattle are perhaps not shared by his quarterback at the moment, and it could be that Lockett’s tenure in the Emerald City will outlast Russell Wilson‘s. But Wilson will be throwing passes to Lockett for at least one more year, and both players will operate within new OC Shane Waldron‘s scheme.
Lockett, who has operated more out of the slot in the past several seasons, hopes to get a little more burn outside the numbers in Waldron’s offense. But wherever he lines up, he is excited about what the future holds after seeing Waldron’s work with the Rams’ passing game in recent years.
“I mean even when we watched the Rams and how they did a lot of things, they did a lot of great things,” Lockett said. “They utilize people in a lot of great ways. And just with the opportunity to be able to have Shane come in, I think there’s a lot of things that we can learn. There’s a lot of things he brings to the table…”
Five Deshaun Watson Accusers Have Spoken With Police
One of the civil suits against Texans QB Deshaun Watson has been dismissed, but as Samantha Ketterer of the Houston Chronicle writes, another lawsuit has been filed, which returns the total to 22. The newest accuser is a makeup artist who alleges, among other things, that at various points during two massage sessions, Watson asked her to put her hand on his penis and tried to kiss and grope her.
She also avers that Watson contacted her via social media to request a massage, at which point she made it clear that she was not a licensed massage therapist. Like all of the other plaintiffs, she is represented by Tony Buzbee.
Even more problematic for Watson is the fact that five of Buzbee’s clients have now spoken to police, as Will Hobson of the Washington Post reports. We had previously heard that Ashley Solis — the first accuser to publicly identify herself — had contacted the Houston Police Department, which opened a criminal investigation earlier this month.
Hobson provides a comprehensive look at how this matter has unfolded, including Buzbee’s initial communication with Watson’s management at Athletes First. Buzbee claims that Scott Gaffield, general counsel for Athletes First, did not take the accusations seriously, and while Gaffield was willing to discuss a “reasonable” settlement for Solis — i.e. less than the $100K that Buzbee had offered on Solis’ behalf — he was doing so just so that Watson “can learn a lesson about having put himself in this situation.” Gaffield declined to comment for Hobson’s story, instead referring a reporter to an earlier statement in which he expressed his belief that Watson did not engage in any wrongdoing.
Buzbee, both in his interview with Hobson and on Instagram, fired back at statements from Rusty Hardin, Watson’s attorney, which indicated that any sexual interactions between Watson and Buzbee’s clients were consensual. Hardin had suggested that Watson turned to social media to arrange for massages due to the pandemic, to which Buzbee replied, “Because of COVID, he was reaching out to dozens of different people on Instagram? For massages? … Because of COVID, you would think he would have one person who had tested negative.”
Meanwhile, Hardin — who has accused Buzbee of taking part in a “new kind of extortion using social media and salacious innuendo” — did not speak with the Washington Post for very long, saying that he believes it would be better to address the inaccuracies of Buzbee’s claims in the series of pleadings he plans to file next week as opposed to a newspaper article.
Jabril Cox To Hold Pro Day
LSU linebacker Jabril Cox will hold a Pro Day on April 26 — just three days before this year’s draft — as his agent, Andy Ross, tweeted. Cox was unable to work out with his teammates at LSU’s Pro Day in March due to a hamstring injury.
Cox is widely seen as a Day 2 talent. His biggest selling point is his versatility, which will make him attractive to any number of clubs. He can line up as an outside linebacker in either a 4-3 or a 3-4 scheme, and his rare combination of size and speed allows him to excel in coverage. He is not as polished against the run, but that coverage ability is one of the first things talent evaluators looks for when studying modern-day ‘backers. His speed and burst also give him some upside as a pass rusher.
Cox began his collegiate career with FCS powerhouse North Dakota State, and he did so well there that, when he graduated and entered the transfer portal, Alabama and LSU both went after him. In his one year with the Tigers, he tallied 58 tackles (6.5 TFL) and three interceptions, including a pick-six. The Butkus Award semifinalist is also lauded for his leadership abilities and character.
The Rams, the Washington Football Team, and the Patriots are among the clubs that could have interest.
Nick Bosa Progressing Well In Recovery From ACL Tear
The 49ers have been a fixture in the news cycle in recent weeks due to their trade up for the No. 3 overall pick in the draft, the speculation that comes standard with such a move, and the potential fallout for incumbent QB Jimmy Garoppolo. However, the team’s fortunes in 2021 and beyond will be influenced not just by what they do with the No. 3 pick, but also by DE Nick Bosa.
Bosa, of course, suffered a torn ACL in Week 2 of the 2020 season, just one of a number of major injuries that torpedoed San Francisco’s chances to repeat as NFC champions. The fact that he was injured so early in the season at least indicated that he would be ready by the start of the 2021 campaign, but in addition to the ACL tear, Bosa sustained further cartilage damage in his left knee, which complicated the prognosis. And as the Niners’ own Ronald Blair learned, ACL surgeries are not always successful.
Luckily, it appears that Bosa, the 2019 Defensive Rookie of the Year, is on the right track. As Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area writes, all signs are pointing towards a full recovery, and Maiocco’s piece includes several videos showing Bosa sprinting in a straight line while pulling a weighted sled and doing other drills.
One look at the videos suggests, as the 49ers hoped, that Bosa will indeed be ready to roll come Week 1, if not much sooner. The team views itself as a title contender this year, and a healthy Bosa will go a long way towards achieving that goal.
The Ohio State product tallied nine sacks in 2019, the second-highest total on the team. He added four sacks in three playoff contests at the end of the season, including the 49ers’ Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs. If San Francisco had held on to win that game, Bosa might have been named Super Bowl MVP.
Latest On Virginia Tech CB Caleb Farley
For a consensus first-round prospect, Virginia Tech cornerback Caleb Farley has had an unconventional rise to the top of NFL draft boards. A high school quarterback, it became clear during the recruiting process that he would probably not be a passer for a top collegiate team, so when he committed to the Hokies in 2017, he did so with the intention of becoming a wide receiver.
But an ACL tear wiped out his true freshman season, and when he returned to the field in 2018, he was asked to play cornerback. Despite the usual growing pains that could be expected with such a position switch, he showed plenty of promise as a DB, and he was tremendous in 2019, racking up four interceptions and 12 passes defensed en route to First-Team All-ACC honors. He also allowed a completion rate of less than 50% on passes thrown in his direction.
He had intended to return to college in 2020, but he opted out of the season due to COVID-19. That made sense, as he didn’t have much left to prove and already had a first-round grade.
The only real concern was the back injury that ended his 2019 season prematurely. As Ben Volin of the Boston Globe writes, Farley underwent a microdiscectomy procedure in March, which is the same procedure that Rob Gronkowski has undergone three times in his career. But according to agent Drew Rosenhaus, Farley “did well with his physical regarding his back and is still expected to go in the first round” (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com).
Of course, physicals are a little different this year due to COVID-19 protocols. Per Volin, the team doctor and head trainer from all 32 teams were able to meet with the top 75 prospects in this year’s draft — along with an additional 75 players with medical red flags — a few days ago in Indianapolis for in-person physicals. That event was critical for the evaluation process, as teams were not allowed to bring their doctors to a prospect’s pro day this year and could not host pre-draft visits at team facilities.
Farley was one of the lucky 150 to be invited to Indianapolis — other prospects were reduced to virtual “physicals” — and if what Rosenhaus says is true, then the 6-2, 207-lb defender should certainly hear his name called within the top 20 picks. He might even have a chance to slide into the top-10, and teams like the Cowboys, Patriots, and Cardinals could all have interest.
He might still be a bit raw, but his size, speed, and physicality should be enough to get him a starting spot right away, and he could develop into a true shutdown corner down the road.
Credit to Ian Cummings of Pro Football Network for details on Farley’s recruiting history and scouting profile.
Extension Candidate: Denzel Ward
The Browns returned to the playoffs in 2020 after a 17-year absence, and their top two picks of the 2018 draft — QB Baker Mayfield and CB Denzel Ward — played pivotal roles in the team’s success. Under the youthful leadership of general manager Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski, Cleveland has the opportunity to be a competitive outfit for the foreseeable future.
But success in the draft and on the field generally leads to big-money extensions for a team’s homegrown talent, and the decision as to whether to authorize such extensions is not always a straightforward one. For instance, although Mayfield bounced back nicely from a disastrous 2019 campaign and posted a top-10 QBR of 72.2 last season, the Browns may make him prove himself again in 2021 before getting serious about extension talks.
Ward, meanwhile, has battled health issues since he entered the league. He has missed at least three games due to injury in each of his first three professional seasons — we’re not counting the games he missed last year due to COVID-19 — and when considering the price tag for top cornerbacks, even “minor” injuries become significant.
On the other hand, his performance between the lines has been everything the Browns could have hoped for when they made him the No. 4 overall pick in 2018. He earned Pro Bowl honors in his rookie season, and despite the missed time due to injury, he has tallied 40 passes defensed and seven interceptions — including one pick-six — in his young career.
Cleveland’s secondary as a whole was hit hard by injury (and the pandemic) last year. In addition to Ward’s ailments, rookie safety Grant Delpit and second-year CB Greedy Williams missed the entire season, and CB Kevin Johnson also missed time. That meant that DC Joe Woods was forced to run zone coverage schemes for the most part, and Ward’s skill-set is probably better-suited to man coverage.
Still, Ward finished as Pro Football Focus’ 23rd-best corner out of 121 qualifiers, and PFF gave him a strong coverage grade. The team added former Rams DBs John Johnson and Troy Hill in free agency this offseason, which should give Woods a little more flexibility and which should, in turn, have a positive trickle-down effect on Ward. But while Hill has experience playing on the boundaries, the Browns may prefer to deploy him in the slot, and it’s still unclear what the team has in Williams at this point. So other than Ward, there are no certainties in terms of outside-the-numbers CBs, and even if there were, it would be hard to imagine Berry & Co. letting a premium talent at a premium position get away.
Of course, a new contract will be costly. The $20MM average annual value that Jalen Ramsey recently pulled down from the Rams is the current pacesetter for the CB market, and while Ward might not be able to hit that number at this point, he certainly has an argument for at least an $18MM AAV. A five-year pact worth between $90MM-$95MM and around $40MM or so in full guarantees sounds about right if the two sides are to come to terms anytime soon.
For now, there have been no reports of extension talks. The Browns will certainly exercise Ward’s fifth-year option for 2022 — which checks in at a fully-guaranteed $13.294MM — and perhaps player and team will start to discuss a longer-term arrangement over the summer.
Contract Details: K. Miller, Lockett, McCoy
Catching you up on the details of a few recently-signed deals:
- Raiders LT Kolton Miller: Three-year extension to keep Miller under club control through 2025. This looks like a fairly team-friendly deal. Miller was paid a $2MM roster bonus today and will earn a $9.5MM salary this year. He is also due a guaranteed $13.5MM roster bonus in 2022, but beyond a few $50K workout bonuses in 2022 and 2024-25, all of the money is in the form of non-guaranteed salary. His salaries from 2022-25 are $3.275MM, $14.225MM, $12.256MM, and $12.256MM (Twitter link via Field Yates of ESPN.com).
- Seahawks WR Tyler Lockett: Four-year extension to keep Lockett under club control through 2025. $19MM signing bonus. $13MM option bonus in 2022. Base salaries from 2021-25 are $2MM, $3MM, $9.7MM, $15.3MM, and $15.3MM. $1.6MM roster bonuses in 2024 and 2025 (Twitter link via Yates). 2021 cap hit of $9.25MM (previously $14.95MM).
- Cardinals QB Colt McCoy: One-year deal. Veteran salary benefit. Worth $1.2MM with $137K guaranteed and counts $987K against the cap. Twitter link via Dan Duggan of The Athletic.