Joe Hawley To Retire?
Last week, we learned that the Buccaneers declined center Joe Hawley‘s 2018 option, which means he is eligible to hit the open market. However, it sounds as if Hawley’s playing career may be over.
As Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times observes, Hawley made an appearance on iHeart Radio on Friday morning, and during his interview, he said he has lost 40 pounds since the end of the 2017 season. He also announced that he plans to donate everything he owns to charity and families in need, and that he plans to travel the country in a van he recently purchased. He intends to live out of the van, to liveblog his journey, and to post videos to a YouTube channel he wants to create.
Those romantic ambitions are probably incompatible with a return to the NFL, and while Hawley did not explicitly say he is retiring, all indications are that he is done playing football for a living. He said, “When the season was over, I was thinking about what I wanted to do next, because I know my career is coming to a close.”
Hawley was the Bucs’ primary starter in the middle in 2015 and 2016. Last offseason, the team shifted Ali Marpet from right guard to center, pushing Hawley to a reserve role. He saw an uptick in playing time when Marpet hit the injured reserve list in November, but he made only four appearances with two starts on the year. For what it’s worth, the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus did not look kindly on his small sample of 203 snaps. Nonetheless, he would surely be able to find an NFL job in 2018 if he wanted one, but his current goals seem to be taking him down a rather different path.
AFC East Rumors: Landry, Suh, Solder, Jets
Dolphins WR Jarvis Landry is expected to sign his franchise tender shortly, and once that happens, he and the team will continue to work together to facilitate a trade. However, Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports tweets that Miami’s asking price in a Landry trade is still unclear, and he says the earlier rumor that the Bears could trade Jordan Howard to the Dolphins in exchange for Landry — a rumor that was subsequently shot down — sounded like a report that Miami planted in order to generate offers. If that was the case, the strategy did not work, as the trade market remains at a standstill. Robinson suggests (via Twitter) that Landry could return to Miami in 2018, but the team will continue to look for the right trade offer.
Here’s more from the AFC East, starting with another item out of South Beach:
- Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports tweets that the Dolphins‘ recent agreement to trade for Robert Quinn is further evidence of his belief that the team is looking to move on from Ndamukong Suh (even though the two play different positions on the defensive line). Other reports have indicated that Miami wants Suh back in 2018, but the club could approach the mercurial DT about a restructure to help reduce his massive cap number.
- Nate Solder is easily the best left tackle set to hit the open market, and as Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald reports, the Patriots have yet to make an offer to him (although the later-than-usual start to free agency means that there is still time to get something done). Solder’s preference is to remain in New England, but if the Pats cannot lock him up within the next week, Howe says Solder will seek the best offer on the open market and will not accept a hometown discount. Sources suggest he could receive upwards of $12MM annually, and if he does find a new home, the Pats will be left with plenty of uncertainty at LT.
- Former Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema attended the scouting combine as a representative of the Patriots, per Doug Kyed of NESN.com. However, it is unclear whether Bielema will be joining the team’s coaching staff. He and New England head coach Bill Belichick are close, and Belichick may have just been doing Bielema a favor by bringing him to the combine.
- As Mike Reiss of ESPN.com observes, the Patriots could be looking closely at running backs in this year’s draft, as Rex Burkhead and Dion Lewis are both set to hit the open market. Former Patriots executive and current Lions GM Bob Quinn recently stated that this year’s crop of collegiate backs is generally strong in pass protection, which is an asset that New England values as much as anything when it comes to its RBs. As such, Reiss suggests need could align perfectly with opportunity when the draft rolls around. Likewise, this year’s draft contains more than usual off-the-line linebackers with first-round abilities, which could also suit New England quite nicely.
- Just like Rich Cimini of ESPN.com, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News sees Teddy Bridgewater as a potential target for the Jets if they cannot land Kirk Cousins. If the Jets somehow do end up with Cousins, it would open up a world of possibilities for New York vis-a-vis its first-round draft choice, and Notre Dame guard Quinton Nelson could be a perfect fit.
QB Notes: Vikings, Rosen, Hackenberg
The Vikings might be the current leaders in the Kirk Cousins sweepstakes, and if the Vikes can land the coveted signal-caller, all three of their 2017 QBs — Case Keenum, Sam Bradford, and Teddy Bridgewater — will likely be suiting up elsewhere in 2018. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets that at least a handful of teams have expressed interest in Bridgewater as a potential starting quarterback, so he does have a market, despite some reports that the Vikings themselves view Bridgewater as a pedestrian QB.
Now let’s take a look at a few more rumors surrounding some of the draft’s top QBs, as well as veteran signal-callers that could be on the move:
- If the Vikings cannot land Cousins, Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune suggests that Eagles QB (and Super Bowl LII MVP) Nick Foles could be on the team’s radar. The Eagles have suggested they are open to trading Foles, and Minnesota just hired former Philadelphia QBs coach John DeFilippo as its new offensive coordinator. Of course, the two sides previously completed a QB trade when the Eagles shipped Bradford to the Vikings prior to the 2016 campaign.
- Paul Schwartz of the New York Post wonders if Giants head coach Pat Shurmur‘s recent unsolicited comments about Eli Manning‘s enviable durability — and Shurmur’s statement that players who get injured a lot continue to get injured a lot — are an indication that Big Blue is concerned about Josh Rosen‘s injury history. The UCLA quarterback has suffered two concussions, and he also underwent surgery on his throwing shoulder in 2016. Nonetheless, Schwartz writes that Rosen has looked as good as advertised at the combine, so aside from health concerns, he appears to be a viable target for the Giants, who hold the No. 2 overall selection.
- Rich Cimini of ESPN.com says it would be a “minor upset” if Christian Hackenberg is still on the Jets in 2018, and Hackenberg’s fate could be tied to the Cousins sweepstakes. If New York does not land Cousins, it will look to acquire another veteran QB or two — Cimini names Bridgewater as one possibility — and then draft a rookie signal-caller. If the Jets do sign Cousins, Hackenberg could theoretically stick as a backup, but even in that scenario, Gang Green would likely try to sign a more accomplished No. 2, and the club may still pick up a rookie in the later rounds of the draft, which would force Hackenberg out of the picture. For his part, Cimini believes it’s time to move on, and it appears head coach Todd Bowles feels similarly. Interestingly, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe says he has watched videos of Hackenberg’s offseason workouts, and he reports the former Penn State star’s mechanics look terrific.
- Sam Darnold‘s throwing motion is a little longer than some scouts would like, but he has no plans to change it, per Chase Goodbread of NFL.com. Darnold is not throwing at this year’s combine, though teams will have a chance to further evaluate his mechanics at USC’s pro day on March 21.
No Major Progress Towards Le’Veon Bell Deal
Despite reports that Le’Veon Bell and the Steelers are more likely to reach a long-term deal this year than they were last year, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports that the two sides have yet to make major progress towards a multi-year contract.
The deadline for teams to apply the franchise tag to prospective free agents is Tuesday, March 6, and at this point, it looks as if Bell will be tagged for the second consecutive year (although GM Kevin Colbert continues to talk to Bell’s representatives, and he reportedly hopes an agreement will be reached by Tuesday’s deadline). Of course, if Bell is hit with the tag, he and the Steelers would still have until mid-July to negotiate a new deal.
In something of a humorous side note, Bell is getting a little help in these negotiations from teammate Maurkice Pouncey. As Fowler notes, Pouncey has taken to Instagram to support Bell, suggesting that if the star RB does not have a new deal by the time the 2018 league year opens, Pouncey will personally speak with Colbert, head coach Mike Tomlin, and team president Art Rooney II to try and facilitate matters.
This year’s franchise tender for running backs would pay Bell around $14.5MM for the 2018 campaign, which gives him a platform on which to negotiate a long-term contract. Last summer, Bell rejected a five-year offer that would have paid him a guaranteed $30MM over the course of the first two years (and $60MM overall), but after putting together another excellent season in 2017, he could exceed both of those figures if he and Pittsburgh can finally work something out in the coming months.
Lamar Jackson Will Not Play WR, Will Represent Himself
We heard several days ago that Louisville QB Lamar Jackson was asked to work out as a wider receiver in addition to working out as a quarterback. However, Jackson himself has disputed that report, according to multiple outlets. Per James Palmer of the NFL Network, Jackson said that no one has asked him to play wideout and that he views himself strictly as a quarterback (Twitter link). Doug Kyed of NESN.com (via Twitter) reports that Jackson would not be willing to play a position other than QB, and Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post echoed that sentiment (Twitter link).
Nonetheless, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reaffirms the previous report — which was made by NFL.com colleague Peter Schrager — that Jackson was indeed asked to work out as a WR (Twitter link). In a separate tweet, Rapoport downplays the significance of the request, saying that other top prospects, like Georgia RB Sony Michel and NC State DE Bradley Chubb, were asked to work out at wide receiver and linebacker, respectively. Of course, asking a running back to run some wideout drills and asking a defensive end to do LB drills is not exactly the same as asking a quarterback whose future as a signal-caller is somewhat in doubt to do work as a receiver.
All of this comes on the heels of reports that Jackson is choosing to represent himself (with his mother serving as his manager). ESPN’s Josina Anderson says (via Twitter) that Jackson does not believe an agent is necessary with the current rookie pay scale system, and there is certainly some truth to that. But, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk observes, an agent would be helpful in putting to rest the dispute as to whether Jackson has been asked to do work as a wide receiver.
Florio suggests that an agent could call the NFL.com reporters to “unring the bell” and to otherwise do what needs to be done to prevent this “issue” from reflecting poorly on Jackson. After all, the report may have been planted by an agent of another QB who is trying to get his client drafted as high as possible, or even by a team interested in Jackson that is trying to get the Louisville star to drop just far enough in the draft.
In any event, Jackson remains one of the most exciting players in the draft, and regardless of his wide receiver skills, he is currently viewed as a first- or second-round QB prospect.
Franchise Tag Candidate: Allen Robinson
Allen Robinson is one of the top receivers in this year’s class of free agent wideouts, and while Robinson and the Jaguars have not engaged in contract talks, Jacksonville is reportedly open to hitting him with the franchise tag to keep him around for 2018.
Robinson presents an interesting case. He was fantastic in 2015, posting 80 catches for 1,400 yards and a whopping 14 touchdowns en route to his first Pro Bowl nod. However, much of that production came when the Jags were trailing big and were forced to throw the football, often against soft coverages. He regressed in 2016, as he put up just 883 yards and six scores, and his 2017 campaign was wiped out by a torn ACL.
So what you have is an intriguing player in the prime of his career with tantalizing physical tools who is two years removed from his best season and who is coming off a major injury. He also struggled against press coverage in 2016, which certainly doesn’t help.
Nonetheless, he is the most gifted receiver on the Jags’ roster, and there would be at least a few teams willing to gamble on his upside if he hits the open market. Jacksonville knows that, and it also knows that it needs to surround Blake Bortles — who just signed an extension keeping him with the Jags through 2020 — with as much talent as possible. That explains why the Jags would be willing to pony up the $16MM franchise tender for a player with Robinson’s promising but questionable track record.
Fellow Jags wideout Marqise Lee is also set to hit free agency, and while he has been a solid contributor over the last several years, he is not nearly as talented as Robinson, and he, too, struggles against press coverage. So if the Jags are to let either player walk, it would likely be Lee. The other wideouts on the roster include the solid but unspectacular Allen Hurns, the unproven Dede Westbrook, and 2017 UDFA Keelan Cole.
There are plenty of intriguing wideouts in this year’s draft, but most of them are Day 2 types and may not be ready to contribute right away, and there are no other free agents that are not likely to be tagged who can match Robinson’s upside. The guess here is that Robinson plays out the 2018 season under the tag and that Jacksonville picks up a wideout in the second or third round to groom behind him.
NFC Notes: Peters, Panthers, Saints
The Rams were one of only two teams to express legitimate interest in acquiring CB Marcus Peters, and while Los Angeles head coach Sean McVay cannot yet talk about Peters or the trade specifically, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star says it is no surprise that the Rams would be the team to land the former first-rounder. Although Peters is now eligible for a long-term extension and is likely to be on his best behavior anyway as a result, Paylor notes that McVay has quickly established a strong presence in LA, and he and DC Wade Phillips have full command and respect of the locker room. Paylor suggests that the Rams’ trade for Peters demonstrates their faith in their culture, and that culture, combined with the fact that they play on the West Coast — where Peters has long indicated he wants to be — made it a perfect fit.
Now let’s take a look at a few more NFC notes:
- The Rams are hiring Holy Cross offensive coordinator Liam Coen as their assistant WRs coach, per Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports (via Twitter).
- Joseph Person of the Charlotte Observer takes a look at the Panthers‘ plans for the offseason, and he says Carolina will likely release DE Charles Johnson, though it is difficult to say whether Julius Peppers will be back or will call it a career. Person also does not expect Andrew Norwell to be back, so the Panthers will need to draft or sign a defensive end and a guard this offseason, and the hope is that whatever guard they acquire will also be capable of playing center.
- The Saints have a few interesting calls to make with respect to their restricted free agents, as Larry Holder of the Times-Picayune observes. Willie Snead, Delvin Breaux, and Brandon Coleman are all RFAs, and although Holder does not make any specific predictions, it sounds as if Snead may be playing elsewhere in 2018, but Breaux and Coleman could be back.
- Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press says Lions GM Bob Quinn has shown a few noticeable draft tendencies in his first several years on the job, including his apparent preferences to draft for need, to draft high-floor prospects (even if those prospects don’t have the potential to be stars), and to draft high-character players with track records at major collegiate programs. In light of that, Birkett predicts that Detroit will select Boston College DE Harold Landry in the first round of the 2018 draft.
- We learned earlier today that it does not look like Anthony Hitchens will be back with the Cowboys.
AFC Notes: Bortles, Jets, Patriots
The big news of the weekend broke last night, when the Jaguars and Blake Bortles struck an extension that will keep the former No. 3 overall pick in Jacksonville through the 2020 campaign. Bortles was already under club control through the 2018 season thanks to the fifth-year option that the Jags had previously exercised, but the new deal — which includes a fairly modest amount of guaranteed money — will give Bortles the ability to realize his potential in Jacksonville while not precluding the team from pursuing other QB options if it needs to. Plus, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported this morning, Bortles’ cap number for 2018 will be reduced from the $19MM fifth-year option number to just $10MM, thereby giving the Jags more room to work this offseason (Twitter link).
Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter) adds more details on Bortles’ deal, reporting that the entire $26.5MM in guaranteed money is guaranteed at signing, that Bortles will get $20MM in the first year of the deal and $16MM in the second year, and that incentives like earning Super Bowl MVP honors can push the total value of the contract to $66.5MM.
Now for more from the AFC, starting with another item on Bortles:
- Bortles played the entire 2017 campaign with a wrist injury, and he underwent surgery on the wrist after the season. Per Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com, the injury consisted of a partially torn ligament on the outside of the wrist and inflammation on the top of it, but Bortles said he is on schedule in his recovery and expects to be cleared with no restrictions in early March. Given what transpired last night, the Jaguars are obviously comfortable with Bortles’ progress.
- The Jets are expected to be aggressive in the bidding for Kirk Cousins, but as Rich Cimini of ESPN.com observes, Cousins has compiled a meager 4-19 mark against teams with winning records, and Cimini says if the Jets view him as a savior and open up the vault for him, they are letting desperation cloud their judgment. In any event, New York should have a pretty good idea of where it stands with respect to its own free agents and players from other clubs (like Cousins) at the end of this week. The NFL scouting combine begins on Tuesday, and in addition to evaluating collegiate prospects, teams use that time to meet with player agents.
- The Patriots are currently near the bottom of the league in terms of salary cap space, but with most of their key players under contract, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe says New England will have plenty of room to operate as it sees fit this offseson. Plus, as Volin notes, the team can add another $17MM of cap space by cutting ties with some obvious release candidates like tight ends Martellus Bennett and Dwayne Allen. Volin also lays out a roadmap for the rest of the Pats’ offseason, which includes keeping Rob Gronkowski happy, re-signing Nate Solder, and letting Malcolm Butler walk.
- We learned yesterday that the Steelers and Martavis Bryant may be headed for a parting of the ways.
Cowboys Not Expected To Re-Sign Anthony Hitchens?
The Cowboys have a number of objectives this offseason, but they will certainly prioritize signing Zack Martin and Demarcus Lawrence to long-term deals. Lawrence will get hit with the franchise tag at some point prior to the March 6 deadline, which will give the two sides until July 16 to work out a multi-year contract. Martin, meanwhile, is still under club control through the 2018 season, but Dallas has been talking about extending him for some time now.
Anthony Hitchens, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent in a couple of weeks, is not the same caliber of player as Lawrence and Martin. However, he is a quality linebacker who will surely generate plenty of interest on the open market, and neither David Moore of the Dallas Morning News nor Clarence Hill of the Star-Telegram believe the Cowboys will be able to retain him.
Both scribes point to recent comments from executive VP Stephen Jones to suggest that Hitchens will not be in Dallas next season. Jones said of Hitchens, “I can’t say enough good things about him. He’s one of those guys who is available. You can count on him. He understands this game is a tough game. He put himself in harm’s way out there when a lot of players wouldn’t do it. He’s the type of guy you want on your football team … At the same time, we all know he’s not the ‘quote, unquote’ Pro Bowl football player. He’s not the guy who’s getting all the accolades but he’s the type of guy you want on your football team so it does make it hard.”
Hill believes that, if Hitchens wants to stay in Dallas, he will have to take a team-friendly deal and turn down more money elsewhere. After all, the Cowboys have just $19MM in cap room at the moment, while other potentially interested teams — like the Colts — are considerably more flush.
Former Dallas LBs coach Matt Eberflus was recently named the Colts’ new defensive coordinator, and Hill believes a Colts-Hitchens union makes perfect sense. Indeed, Indianapolis will be moving from a 3-4 scheme to a 4-3 under Eberflus, and Hitchens would help the team make that transition.
Assuming Hitchens does leave, Hill says Dallas will need to prioritize the linebacker position in the draft, but as the 2018 draft class is rife with quality LB prospects, the Cowboys should be able to adequately replace Hitchens’ production.
AFC Rumors: M. Peters, Harrison, Pryor
Now that the Chiefs have acquired David Amerson and are on the verge of adding Kendall Fuller — once the Alex Smith trade is finalized — Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk wonders if Kansas City could trade Marcus Peters. Peters, whom the Chiefs selected in the first round of the 2015 draft, has quickly established himself as one of the better corners in the league, but as Florio notes, he has been a “handful” for Kansas City, and the incident that got Peters suspended for a game in December may have been the last straw for the team. Florio says “some in league circles” believe Peters could be on the trade block, and Alex Marvez of SiriusXM appears to think it’s a possibility as well (Twitter link).
Let’s take a look at more notes from around the AFC:
- There is a “reasonable chance” that James Harrison returns to the Patriots in 2018, as Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk (citing Christopher Price of the Boston Sports Journal) writes. New England successfully deployed Harrison as a three-down player after acquiring him late last season, and as Harrison recently indicated he wants to play at least one more year, it may make sense for both parties to continue their relationship.
- Mike Reiss of ESPN.com says it does appear as if well-respected offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia will be back with the Patriots in 2018, a prospect that was very much in doubt just a few weeks ago.
- The Browns will pursue a reunion with free agent wideout Terrelle Pryor this offseason, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Cabot says Pryor never really wanted to leave Cleveland last year, but when the Browns signed Kenny Britt to the same contract they had on the table for Pryor, he didn’t have a choice.
- The devastating injury to Ryan Shazier will not impact the way the Steelers approach their decision-making with respect to fifth-year options, as Florio writes.
- Now that A.J. McCarron is set to leave the Bengals, Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer wonders what his departure will mean for Cincinnati. He says Andy Dalton is not going anywhere — which was at least a remote possibility before Marvin Lewis decided to return — and he believes the Bengals could look to address other, more pressing needs in the early rounds of the 2018 draft and select a polished collegiate signal-caller in the middle rounds (just as they did with McCarron). Owczarski also suggests that Cincinnati could add a veteran on a one-year deal to back up Dalton.