Texans To Trade J.J. Watt In Offseason?
Texans star defensive end J.J. Watt was mentioned in trade rumors in advance of the November 3 deadline. Though he ended up staying put, he may be playing his last games with the only team he has ever known. According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, Watt is a virtual lock to be dealt this offseason.
Watt, 31, recently indicated that he does not want to be part of a rebuild, and the 1-6 Texans, who will be looking for a new GM and new head coach at season’s end, appear to be heading in that direction. Plus, Houston is without a first- or second-round selection in 2021, and while Watt is unlikely to fetch a draft pick that high, the club is desperate for whatever draft capital it can get.
The Texans had a number of players that other teams were interested in trading for, but acting GM Jack Easterby was in an awkward position due to his interim title, and he did not want to make a deal unless he was overwhelmed by an offer.
“[Watt will] be traded by March, bank on it,” said one GM. “That’s a hard trade to make in the middle of the season and there are going to be questions about the medicals. [Easterby] can’t make that trade in November. And the owner probably wasn’t quite ready to make it, but it’s coming.”
Indeed, owner Cal McNair was reportedly reluctant to eat salary to facilitate a trade, but given Watt’s age and medical history, McNair will likely need to change his tune this offseason. Watt is due to make $17.5MM in 2021, the last year of his current contract.
Watt, the 11th-overall pick of the 2011 draft, is a Houston legend for his on-field dominance and his off-field charitable work. But he missed significant time due to injury in 2016, 2017, and 2019, and his best days are probably behind him. Still, even an aging Watt can be a force, and there will be a number of contenders interested in his services.
La Canfora names the Steelers and Packers as two potential landing spots.
Bears Place S Deon Bush On Reserve/COVID-19 List
The Bears have placed safety Deon Bush on the reserve/COVID-19 list, per a team announcement. According to Dianna Russini of ESPN.com, Bush did not test positive for the coronavirus, but he is considered a close contact with someone who did test positive while he was away from the team (Twitter link).
This is notable because Bush flew with his teammates to Tennessee for this week’s game against the Titans before he learned that the person he was in contact with tested positive, as Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk writes. Luckily, COVID-19 tests across the league came back negative this morning, but given the virus’ incubation period, the Bears might not be out of the woods just yet.
Indeed, OL Lachavious Simmons did recently test positive and has joined Bush on the reserve/COVID-19 list. OL Aaron Neary has been summoned from the practice squad to take Simmons’ place on the active roster.
Chicago selected Bush in the fourth round of the 2016 draft. He has started only two games since his rookie season and has seen limited defensive snaps, but he has been a key special teams contributor. Simmons, a seventh-round rookie, just got promoted from the taxi squad earlier this week.
In other Bears news, the club is expected to sign veteran offensive lineman Eric Kush, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter). Kush has a visit lined up this week, and assuming he clears COVID-19 protocols and passes a physical, he will join the team. He started four games for the Bears in 2016 and seven contests in 2018.
Patriots Notes: Gilmore, Newton, Edelman
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is usually tight-lipped when it comes to, well, just about everything, but he was quite candid in discussing his team’s struggles this season. The 2-4 Pats are in the midst of their first three-game losing streak since 2002, and Belichick suggested that one of his club’s goals in 2020 was to get right with the salary cap after years of heavy investments.
“This is kind of the year that we’ve taken to, I would say, adjust our cap from the spending that we’ve had in accumulation of prior years,” Belichick said (via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com). “We just haven’t been able to have the kind of depth on our roster that we’ve had in some other years.”
In addition to their league-leading eight COVID-19 opt-outs, the Pats are carrying about $26MM of dead cap charges this season, and as Reiss indicated back in March, the club’s financial picture in 2021 is much brighter. New England may be taking its lumps in 2020, but it is still lurking in the AFC East and is eyeing a major rebound next year.
Now for more out of Foxborough:
- Stephon Gilmore‘s name has come up in trade rumors, but Reiss says the Pats are not actively shopping their star corner, which is consistent with what we heard several days ago. However, the ESPN scribe suggests that Belichick could be willing to listen if a rival club were to offer a first- or second-round draft choice. Assuming that does not happen, then Gilmore is likely to finish out the season with New England. The two sides would need to address his contract situation at that point, as Gilmore is under club control through 2021 and will be seeking a healthy extension.
- As of this writing, the Patriots have not done much to suggest that they will be sellers at this week’s trade deadline, but if they fall to the division-rival Bills today, that could change, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com confirms.
- QB Cam Newton was benched in a blowout loss to the 49ers last week, and though the time he missed due to COVID-19 certainly could explain his recent struggles, the Pats are still alarmed by the number of mistakes he’s making, per Jay Glazer of FOX Sports (video link). While Newton’s job is not in imminent danger, he could lose the starting gig if he does not turn it around soon.
- New England’s WR depth chart, which is already quite thin, took another hit when Julian Edelman was placed on IR with a knee injury. Belichick said he expects the veteran pass catcher to be back this season, but several people close to Edelman have their doubts, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link). Edelman’s knee has been bothering him for awhile, and although his recent surgery helped alleviate some discomfort, the knee is still bone-on-bone. The Pats could save $4MM against the cap by moving on from the 34-year-old at season’s end, and one wonders if he might have played his last game for New England.
- In an effort to bolster their WR group, the Pats plan to have veteran wideout Donte Moncrief come in for a workout, per Reiss (via Twitter). The former third-rounder has generally struggled to live up to expectations in his career, and he was recently released off the Jets’ practice squad. Given Gang Green’s own receiver issues, that’s not a good sign, but Moncrief is only 27 and still possesses plenty of physical tools.
- In addition to Moncrief, the Pats are also bringing in fellow WR Darius Jennings and DT Ryan Glasgow, according to Reiss. Albert Breer of SI.com says the team recently hosted FB Roosevelt Nix (Twitter link).
Vikings Will Not Trade WR Adam Thielen
There are a number of teams that would like to add a wide receiver in advance of Tuesday’s trade deadline, and Vikings wideout Adam Thielen would probably pique the interest of all of those clubs. However, as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports, Minnesota has no intention of dealing its 30-year-old receiver (Twitter link).
The Vikes are 1-5 and have already sold off one major asset by trading Yannick Ngakoue. They are also willing to deal safety Anthony Harris. However, both Ngakoue and Harris are set to hit free agency at the end of the season, while Thielen is under club control through 2024.
And while Minnesota looks dead in the water this year, there is still enough talent on the roster — including Thielen — to suggest that a rebound in 2021 could be in the cards. If the club plans to retool rather than rebuild, having Thielen in the fold would go a long way towards a return to contention next year.
Thielen and the Vikings agreed to a lucrative four-year extension in April 2019, and though injuries limited him to 10 games last season, he is on track for about 85 catches and over 1,100 receiving yards in 2020. That would be a little off the pace he set in his 2017-18 Pro Bowl campaigns, but those are still respectable numbers, and his 13.0 yards-per-reception average is right in line with his best seasons. He is also currently leading the league with seven TD catches this year.
There’s always a chance the Vikings could be blown away by an offer, especially since Thielen’s salaries throughout his contract are fairly manageable and since it would be easy enough for a team to get out of that contract at any point after the 2020 season is over. It just doesn’t seem like that’s going to happen, and WR-needy teams like the Browns, Ravens, Patriots, and Packers, among others, will need to turn their attention elsewhere (not that Minnesota would ever trade Thielen to Green Bay anyway).
Ryan Kerrigan Has Requested Trade
Washington edge defender Ryan Kerrigan has requested a trade, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com writes. However, WFT has said that it will not deal its 32-year-old stalwart.
Of course, that could just be a negotiating ploy. Although the 2-5 Washington outfit is somehow in second place in the NFC East, it hardly profiles as a championship contender, and Kerrigan is on the last year of his current contract. Plus, his playing time has gone down considerably, as he has appeared in just 36% of the club’s defensive snaps this season.
As John Keim of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter), Kerrigan requested the trade some time ago (though he did say back in June that he would like to finish his career in Washington). The bigger issue is that teams just might not be all that interested in Kerrigan. Keim indicated that rival clubs have not been calling WFT about the 2011 first-rounder.
Kerrigan is Washington’s all-time leader in sacks with 94, including four this season. And Pro Football Focus still considers him an above-average pass rusher, giving him a 69.6 rating in that metric, good for 32nd among the league’s qualified edge defenders. It seems that a team in need of a boost to its pass rushing rotation could certainly use Kerrigan, but for now, it looks like he’ll stay put.
As we heard last week, however, the less-accomplished (but considerably younger) Ryan Anderson could be on the move.
NFL Suspends K Aldrick Rosas
Free agent kicker Aldrick Rosas has been suspended for four games for violating the league’s personal conduct policy, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter).
Rosas, then a member of the Giants, was arrested in June following a hit-and-run incident. Per the police report, Rosas was driving erratically before he blew through a red light and smashed into the side of a pickup truck. Then, cops say he continued driving, stopped only when his SUV broke down, and took off running. Initial reports suggested the 25-year-old may have been intoxicated.
The Giants cut Rosas in July, and he signed with the Jaguars’ practice squad late last month. He was promoted for Jacksonville’s Week 4 loss to the Bengals, a game in which he converted four of five field goal attempts, including a 50-yarder. He also sank his only PAT. However, he was injured in that contest and moved to the Jags’ practice squad injury list. Per ESPN.com, Jacksonville released him on October 30.
Luckily for Rosas, he will not receive any jail time for the June incident. As Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post wrote shortly before the Jags signed the Southern Oregon product, Rosas pleaded no contest to reckless driving, leaving the scene of an accident, and driving without a valid license. He did receive three years of probation as part of the plea deal.
Assuming he is healthy, he could be on the shortlist for teams in need of kicking help after his suspension is up.
Has Odell Beckham Played His Last Game For The Browns?
The Browns have lost wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. for the season thanks to a torn ACL, and Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network says there is a “very real possibility” that OBJ has played his last game for Cleveland (video link).
Of course, this is not the first time we have heard reports that Beckham’s days with the Browns could be numbered. Towards the end of his disappointing first season in Cleveland in 2019, it was reported that Beckham wanted out and that he had approached opposing players and coaches before (and even during) games and told them, “come get me.” His name cropped up in trade speculation again in the spring, but team sources refuted the notion that OBJ could be on the move, just as they did a few months later.
It would be a stretch to suggest that the Browns are a better team without Beckham, who is a premium talent. But it’s also true that QB Baker Mayfield performed well as a rookie in 2018 without Beckham, struggled in 2019 with him, and was terrific in a win over the Bengals last week after Beckham left the game due to injury. There are a whole host of explanations that have nothing to do with Beckham, but as Rapoport observes, OBJ has never really embraced Cleveland and has never developed a rapport with Mayfield, who often looks as though he is trying to force-feed the ball to his star wideout.
Beckham cannot really be traded until the spring or summer of 2021. $12MM of his 2021 salary will become fully guaranteed in March, before he will be recovered from his ACL injury. After that, though, all of his guarantees will have been paid out, and the rest of his contract looks quite palatable for an interested team (Beckham is due to earn $14.5MM in 2021 and $13.75MM in 2022 and 2023, with $1MM roster bonuses and $250K workout bonuses each season).
So depending on how the rest of the year goes for the Browns — who are sitting at 5-2 and have a very favorable schedule the rest of the way — OBJ may find himself on his third team before the 2021 season begins.
Trade Rumors: Thomas, Njoku, Watt, Jets
Saints head coach Sean Payton has said his team has no interest in trading star receiver Michael Thomas, though Thomas’ camp was recently said to be looking for potential deals. There has been no movement towards a Thomas trade, and whether that’s because New Orleans has no interest in dealing him or because the club has not received an offer it likes, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com says Thomas will stay put.
With the trade deadline two days away, let’s round up a few more rumors on players who could be on the move:
- The Browns don’t want to trade tight end David Njoku, but Njoku has renewed his request to be dealt, and Rapoport says Cleveland has been fielding calls on the former first-rounder. It may take at least a fourth-round pick to get a deal done, but with Austin Hooper set to return and with the emergence of rookie Harrison Bryant, the Browns may elect to move Njoku.
- Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes that the Texans are at the center of the trade market, with one executive saying Houston could move as many as five players if it wants to. Rapoport expects the Packers‘ interest in Will Fuller — which dates back to the summer — to ramp up, but it will likely take a high pick to convince the Texans to move Fuller. Fellow WR Kenny Stills has also drawn some interest, though rival clubs see the contracts for Stills and Randall Cobb as prohibitive. DE J.J. Watt may be receptive to a trade, but considering his contract and age, other teams probably don’t value him like the Texans do.
- The Jets have received calls on LB Avery Williamson, OTs George Fant and Chuma Edoga, and CB Quincy Wilson, per Albert Breer of SI.com. Rich Cimini of ESPN.com says the Steelers — who recently lost Devin Bush for the season — could be in the market for Williamson, and Edoga also seems like a good bet to be dealt since he does not look like a fit with the current regime.
- La Canfora says teams have also called the Jets about WR Breshad Perriman and TE Chris Herndon, though Breer notes that safety Marcus Maye has not drawn much interest.
- Rapoport names Dolphins RB Jordan Howard and Seahawks TE Jacob Hollister as two other players who could be moved. And though the Bengals are shopping disgruntled wideout John Ross, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com says there hasn’t been interest in Ross (Twitter link).
Seahawks To Sign Alex Collins To Practice Squad
The Seahawks are adding a familiar face to their RB corps. Per Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Seattle plans to sign Alex Collins to its practice squad.
As Brady Henderson of ESPN.com observes, Collins is beginning COVID-19 testing today. However, because the league’s protocols require six negative tests over six days before a new player can enter a team’s facility for the first time, Collins will not be available for the Seahawks’ game against the 49ers this weekend (Twitter links).
Seattle selected Collins, an Arkansas product, in the fifth round of the 2016 draft. He was waived prior to final cutdowns in the summer of 2017, and the Ravens quickly scooped him up. At the time, it looked like a coup for Baltimore, as Collins piled up nearly 1,000 rushing yards on a healthy 4.6 YPC average and entered the 2018 season at the top of the club’s RB depth chart.
Unfortunately, Collins was not as effective in 2018 as he had been the year before, and he also missed six games due to injury. He was then arrested in March 2019 on marijuana and handgun charges, and the Ravens waived him promptly thereafter. He has been looking for his next NFL opportunity ever since.
Now healthy and eligible to play — his legal matters have been resolved and he served a three-game suspension while in free agency limbo — Collins will look to resurrect his career in the same place it began. And considering that the Seahawks’ top running backs are all dealing with injuries, Collins could see game action soon.
He has generated a fair amount of interest over the last year or so. He worked out with the Bills and Packers in December, the Seahawks and Dolphins in January, and as Pelissero tweets, he visited the Lions earlier this week. Still only 26, Collins profiles as an intriguing midseason pickup.
Patriots Unlikely To Trade Stephon Gilmore?
Before the early afternoon games on Sunday, the Patriots were mentioned as trade deadline buyers. A few hours later, they were clobbered by the 49ers, a sobering defeat that dropped them to 2-4 and made their deadline plans difficult to predict.
There is plenty of speculation that, if New England falls to the Bills this weekend, the Pats will look to trade away some veteran assets in exchange for draft capital. And perhaps the biggest name that could be available in a deal is star cornerback Stephon Gilmore.
The Pats reportedly shopped Gilmore before this year’s draft and during training camp, but then they gave the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year what was called a pay raise in September. As Albert Breer of SI.com writes, however, the team actually just moved $4.5MM from Gilmore’s 2021 salary to his 2020 pay. That indicated to other clubs that 2020 was going to be Gilmore’s last year in Foxborough, and if the Patriots do indeed lose to Buffalo, they should expect their phones to start ringing off the hook. According to Breer, they have already told teams that they would be willing to listen to offers for almost anyone currently on the roster.
That said, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com has not heard of any new developments on the Gilmore front (via Ricky Doyle of NESN.com). While that could certainly change at any time, there is nothing imminent just yet. Plus, talks could be complicated by the knee injury that has put Gilmore’s availability for this weekend’s divisional battle in doubt.
In addition to the high-level draft picks that a Gilmore trade would entail, the acquiring team must also be prepared to pony up a massive extension soon. Gilmore’s contract runs through the 2021 campaign, and even though he is not performing at the same level this year as he was in 2019, he will surely demand a top-of-the-market contract this offseason.