Rams, Jared Goff Agree To Extension
The Rams and quarterback Jared Goff have agreed to a four-year extension that will keep Goff in LA through 2024, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). The team announced that the two sides have indeed agreed to terms.
Schefter reports in a separate tweet that the four-year pact is worth $134MM and includes a record $110MM guarantee. When factoring in the two years that were remaining on Goff’s rookie deal (including the fifth-year option), LA effectively has Goff on a six-year, $161MM contract.
Carson Wentz, who was taken No. 2 overall in the 2016 draft — one spot behind Goff — signed a massive extension several months ago that ties him to the Eagles through 2024. Wentz’ extension is for four years and $128MM ($32MM per year) with just over $107MM in guarantees, so it stands to reason that Goff’s deal would top Wentz in terms of AAV and guarantees.
After all, Goff does not have the major injury concerns that have plagued Wentz in the early stages of his professional career, and Goff is coming off a stellar campaign in which he threw for 4,688 yards, 32 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions while earning a Pro Bowl nod and a trip to the Super Bowl. There was some chatter that the Rams would simply allow Goff to play out his contract and walk in free agency after the 2020 campaign, but head coach Sean McVay dismissed that notion back in June while fully committing to his soon-to-be 25-year-old signal-caller.
Obviously, the QB market is only growing, and it makes sense for the Rams to make a move now before it hits $40MM/year territory. Goff is not perfect, but he’s quite good already, and he still has room to grow. Plus, the Rams profile as Super Bowl contenders for at least the next couple of seasons.
The team already extended McVay and GM Les Snead in July, so three of the most important people in the organization are set to guide LA for the long haul.
Ian Rapoport of NFL.com first reported that the deal would pay Goff over $32MM per season and would include the largest guarantee in league history (Twitter links).
Raiders Release Doug Martin With Injury Settlement
Late last month, it was reported that the Raiders had released Doug Martin, though shortly thereafter another report indicated that Martin had been placed on IR. In short, it was clear that Martin would be released with an injury settlement, and as ESPN’s Field Yates tweets, that happened today. The club also waived/injured DE Alex Barrett.
Martin has been dealing with a shoulder injury, and once he gets healthy, he will be free to sign with any club. The Raiders could theoretically bring him back, though they would have to wait a minimum of three weeks to do so.
Martin, a former first-round pick of the Buccaneers, spent the first six years of his career with Tampa Bay before catching on with the Raiders in March 2018. In his lone season with the Silver-and-Black, Martin compiled 723 rushing yards on 172 carries — good for a respectable 4.2 YPC mark — and four touchdowns. It’s a far cry from his 2015 First Team All-Pro campaign, when he piled up 1,402 yards on the ground and 271 yards through the air, but he proved that he can still be a serviceable back.
For the time being, at least, the Raiders are set to roll with Josh Jacobs and DeAndre Washington as their 1-2 punch at RB.
Saints Rookie Carl Granderson Released From Jail, Reinstated
The Saints signed defensive end Carl Granderson as a UDFA in May and gave him a hefty guarantee despite the fact that he had a pending trial for sexual assault charges in July. His attorney and prosecutors reached a plea deal whereby Granderson would have served one year of probation, but a Wyoming judge went against the plea deal and ordered that Granderson immediately begin serving a six-month jail sentence. The Saints subsequently placed Granderson on the Did Not Report list.
Granderson’s attorney moved the court for a reconsideration of the sentence, and as Herbie Teope of NOLA.com reports, a different judge granted the motion. Granderson has been released and will need to serve one year of probation, but he is allowed to join the Saints. Teope — who says the team did a great deal of due diligence on the matter before signing Granderson — also notes that Granderson was reinstated with an Exempt/Commissioner Permission designation. He will not count against the team’s roster for now, and New Orleans will have two weeks to decide what to do with him.
It seems likely that the club will find a place for him on the 53-man roster given the financial commitment to him and given his talent. He almost certainly would have been drafted if not for his legal situation, and he could become a useful part of the Saints’ front seven this year.
As Teope observes, Granderson is not subject to league discipline as the incident that gave rise to the assault charges occurred before Granderson was in the league.
Dolphins Release Nate Orchard
Edge rusher Nate Orchard survived cutdown day in Miami, but he couldn’t make it to Week 1. Per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, the Dolphins have released Orchard (Twitter link).
Orchard, whom the Browns selected in the second round of the 2015 draft, posted four sacks for the Fins this preseason, and he looked primed to open the 2019 campaign as a starting defensive end. Now, one of last year’s “Hard Knocks” stars will have to look elsewhere, though his strong showing this summer should earn him another opportunity fairly quickly.
The move is somewhat surprising given that Orchard is still young enough (26) for a rebuilding outfit like the Dolphins to carefully evaluate him over the course of the season. Plus, as Jackson notes in a full-length post, defensive line coach Marion Hobby praised Orchard at length just hours before he was cut. Hobby said, “[t]hat was the biggest thing, just watching him on tape. You can see from day one that he can run, that he can do some good stuff. I think he’s been doing a good job of taking coaching and sometimes you have to keep him focused.”
Without Orchard, Miami’s DE depth chart consists of Charles Harris, UDFA Jonathan Ledbetter, and recent waiver claim Avery Moss.
In a related move, the Dolphins claimed LB James Crawford off waivers from the Packers.
Sunday NFL Transactions: NFC West
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four NFC West teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Cardinals, Rams, Seahawks and 49ers are noted below.
Additionally, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads today. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.
Here are Sunday’s NFC West transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day.
Arizona Cardinals
- Claimed:
- Signed:
- DE Cassius Marsh (story)
- Waived:
- RB T.J. Logan
- LB Pete Robertson
- LB Tanner Vallejo
- Signed to practice squad:
- QB Drew Anderson
- LB Dante Booker
- CB Nate Brooks
- TE Darrell Daniels
- LB Vontarrius Dora
- WR A.J. Richardson
- TE Caleb Wilson
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed to practice squad:
- LB Dakota Allen
- TE Kendall Blanton
- TE Chandler Brewer
- DT Marquise Copeland
- DB Donte Deayon
- DE Landis Durham
- RB John Kelly
- OL Jeremiah Kolone
- S Jake Gervase
- QB John Wolford
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed:
- DB Antone Exum
- Placed on IR:
- Signed to practice squad:
- LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles
- DT Kevin Givens
- S Marcell Harris
- TE Daniel Helm
- WR Malik Henry
- LB Elijah Lee
- G Ross Reynolds
- DE Jeremiah Valoaga
- RB Jeff Wilson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed to practice squad:
- WR Jazz Ferguson
- WR Terry Wright
- TE Jacob Hollister
- CB Simeon Thomas
- G Jordan Roos
- T Elijah Nkansah
Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC North
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC North teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Ravens, Bengals, Browns, and Steelers are noted below.
Additionally, as of today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.
Here are Sunday’s AFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed to practice squad:
- DE Aaron Adeoye
- OL Marcus Applefield
- CB Maurice Canady
- FB Christopher Ezeala
- WR Sean Modster
- LB Donald Payne
- OL R.J. Prince
- TE Charles Scarff
- DE Zach Sieler
- RB De’Lance Turner
- WR Antoine Wesley
Cincinnati Bengals
- Claimed:
- WR Pharoh Cooper
- RB Samaje Perine
- Waived:
- RB Josh Malone
- LB Hardy Nickerson
- Signed to practice squad:
- TE Moritz Böhringer
- CB Anthony Chesley
- LB Noah Dawkins
- HB Jordan Ellis
- TE Jordan Franks
- S Trayvon Henderson
- WR Stanley Morgan
- TE Mason Schreck
- G Keaton Sutherland
Cleveland Browns
- Claimed:
- Waived:
- Placed on IR:
- OL Drew Forbes
- Signed to practice squad:
- DT Brandin Bryant
- TE Stephen Carlson
- WR Shelton Gibson
- LB Willie Harvey
- S J.T. Hassell
- CB Robert Jackson
- DB Tigie Sankoh*
- WR Derrick Willies
- C Willie Wright
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed to practice squad:
- S Marcus Allen
- RB Trey Edmunds
- OL Derwin Gray
- WR Tevin Jones
- S Trevon Mathis
- DL Henry Mondeaux
- OL Patrick Morris
- TE Kevin Rader
- TE Christian Scotland-Williamson
- LB Robert Spillane
* = International Pathway Program player
Panthers Release Torrey Smith
The paycut that Torrey Smith accepted back in May wasn’t enough to save his job in Carolina. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, the Panthers have released the veteran wideout (Twitter link).
Smith missed five games due to a knee injury in 2018 — his first and only season in Charlotte — and he appeared in 11 games in total (six starts). He was targeted just 31 times on the year, hauling in 17 of those targets for 190 yards and two touchdowns. Smith has never been a volume receiver, but he hasn’t posted more than 40 catches since 2014.
The former home run hitter, now 30, has lost a step or two over the past couple of years, and given that he never had great hands or route-running ability, losing top-end speed is especially problematic. He was squeezed out of the Panthers’ plans, but he should get another chance as a depth WR and occasional deep threat elsewhere.
He does have two Super Bowl rings, one from his 2012 season in Baltimore and another from his 2017 campaign in Philadelphia.
Cardinals To Sign Cassius Marsh
The Seahawks signed DE Cassius Marsh in April with the idea that he could bolster the team’s pass rush, but he became expendable after Seattle traded for Jadeveon Clowney. Now, Marsh will join the third NFC West team of his career, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports that Marsh is set to sign with the Cardinals (Twitter link).
Marsh, 27, had 5.5 sacks and 14 QB hits for the 49ers last year. The former fourth-round pick of the Seahawks will join a pass rushing rotation that also includes Terrell Suggs and Chandler Jones.
The Cardinals didn’t do much right last year, but they did compile 49 sacks, and Marsh will serve as a worthwhile complement to the front seven.
Seahawks Hope To Re-Sign Geno Smith
After waiving Paxton Lynch and releasing Geno Smith over the past couple of days, the Seahawks do not presently have any QBs on the roster behind starter Russell Wilson. We suggested last night that the club could look to re-sign Smith, and Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times says that is indeed Seattle’s plan (Twitter link).
And as veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer tweets, now that the Seahawks have traded two players in exchange for Jadeveon Clowney, the team has an open roster spot that they can use on Smith. The Clowney trade wasn’t finalized prior to Saturday’s cutdown deadline, so Seattle was compelled to release Smith to the open market.
As a vested veteran, Smith is a free agent and can sign with any team he chooses. But he would be a backup wherever he signs, and being Wilson’s clipboard holder isn’t a bad gig.
Smith served as the QB2 for the Chargers last year and for the Giants in 2017, and at this point, the former Jets starter and second-round pick looks destined for a career as a journeyman backup.
Cowboys, Ezekiel Elliott Still Have Significant Ground To Cover
The Ezekiel Elliott pendulum continues to swing back and forth. We heard yesterday that contract talks between Elliott and the Cowboys were intensifying, and the fact that Dallas elected to keep only two RBs on its 53-man roster suggests that the club is indeed expecting to have Zeke back for Week 1.
Today, however, David Moore of the Dallas Morning News reports that the two sides still have significant ground to cover. Moore says talks are certainly intensifying, but given that there had been no meaningful dialogue over the last few weeks, the mere fact that the parties returned to the negotiating table this weekend represents marked progress. The word “intensifying” should not necessarily be construed to mean that a deal is close.
As Moore reiterates, the primary issue in negotiations is the guaranteed money. The AAV gap between the league’s current highest-paid RBs — Todd Gurley‘s $14.3MM and Le’Veon Bell‘s $13.1MM — isn’t making player or team lie awake at night. The gulf between Gurley’s $45MM guarantee and David Johnson‘s $31.8MM guarantee is the real holdup, as the Cowboys don’t want to set the RB market in terms of guarantees given that there is already a huge gap between Gurley and the next player at his position.
It feels like an agreement may not be too far away, but there is still significant legwork to be done.