Seahawks HC Pete Carroll On LB Jordyn Brooks, CB Devon Witherspoon
The Seahawks recently declined the fifth-year option on linebacker Jordyn Brooks, which would have locked in a fully-guaranteed salary of $12.7MM for 2024. Brooks will therefore be eligible for unrestricted free agency at the end of the upcoming season.
Seattle’s decision was not a surprising one, as Brooks suffered an ACL tear in January and is therefore a candidate to begin the 2023 campaign on the PUP list. And even if he did not sustain that injury, it’s difficult to know whether the ‘Hawks would have exercised his fifth-year option. After all, $12.7MM is a steep price to pay for an inside linebacker who, despite gaudy tackle numbers, generally struggles in coverage and does not offer much by way of pass rush production.
Head coach Pete Carroll, though, still sees Brooks as a core piece of the club’s defense for the foreseeable future.
“He’s got a long, long future for us,” Carroll said during a recent appearance on 93.3 KJR (via Brady Henderson of ESPN.com). “We love the way he plays and what he brings and all of that. We’ve got to orchestrate the way we move forward. The decision we made now (with respect to the fifth-year option), this is not an indication of our future. We expect Jordyn to be with us for a long time.”
In 2021, his first year as a full-time starter, Brooks set the Seahawks’ single-season tackle record with 181, and he became the team’s defensive signal-caller in 2022 after the departure of franchise icon Bobby Wagner. In the wake of Brooks’ injury and Cody Barton‘s decision to join the Commanders in free agency, Seattle reunited with Wagner and signed former Steelers first-rounder Devin Bush. Both of those contracts, however, are for one-year terms, and the ‘Hawks did not select any inside linebackers in the draft.
So, despite the ACL tear and Brooks’ shortcomings, it is very possible that Carroll’s remarks were more than lip service, and that he truly does envision a new contract for Brooks at some point. If nothing else, the Texas Tech product offers high-end tackling ability and familiarity with the club’s defensive scheme, and there is value in that.
In addition to Brooks, Carroll also spoke about the Seahawks’ selection of cornerback Devon Witherspoon with their first pick (No. 5 overall) in last month’s draft. That choice registered as something of a surprise, as Witherspoon does not have the length that Seattle typically looks for in its CBs, and the team had a more pressing need for a front-seven defender.
One of this year’s top non-QB prospects was Georgia defensive lineman Jalen Carter, who would have seemingly represented a good marriage of need and value for the Seahawks. The club’s decision to bypass Carter in favor of Witherspoon suggested to many that Seattle was scared off by Carter’s character concerns and/or his underwhelming Pro Day performance, but Carroll said that was not the case.
“We spent a lot of time (with Carter) and felt comfortable that we knew what we were dealing with,” Carroll said (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times). “There was just a special aspect of Devon and the way that he fit in. Was going to be a rare opportunity, so we jumped at it.”
Predraft reports indicated that Carroll was more inclined to select Carter than other members of the team’s power structure, but even if Carter was the head coach’s preference, it’s difficult to argue with the Witherspoon selection. Witherspoon was widely-regarded as the best corner in the draft, he plays a premium position, and he and second-year pro Tariq Woolen should form a young, dynamic starting tandem on the boundaries of the Seattle defense.
Titans To Move Aaron Brewer To Center
The Titans plan to make offensive lineman Aaron Brewer their starting center, as Brewer himself told reporters, including Jim Wyatt of the team’s official website. The 2020 UDFA has logged snaps at the pivot over his first three professional seasons, though the bulk of his playing time has come at left guard.
“I have been working at center right now,” Brewer said. “And I would say that is the goal for the team right now – for me to move into the center spot and take over that role.”
Tennessee had deployed Ben Jones at center for the past seven years, and Jones was a model of consistency and durability for most of that stretch. Unfortunately, he suffered two concussions in 2022 and was forced to miss five contests as a result, the first time he was absent for more than a single game in any season during his Titans tenure. In February, Jones was released, thereby creating a significant void that Brewer will try to fill.
After jettisoning Jones and three-time Pro Bowl left tackle Taylor Lewan — who played just 20 games in the past three years due to multiple ACL tears — new Titans GM Ran Carthon has been busy trying to reconstruct his offensive front. He signed former Eagle Andre Dillard to a three-year deal to serve as Lewan’s replacement, and he added former 49er Daniel Brunskill to replace free agent defection Nate Davis at right guard.
In last month’s draft, Carthon used his first-round choice (No. 11 overall) on Northwestern blocker Peter Skoronski, who could compete with Dillard for the left tackle post but who is more likely to begin his career as Tennessee’s left guard. So four of the Titans’ five presumptive starting offensive lineman will either be new to the team or in a new position, with only right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere set to reprise his 2022 role.
However, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. The Titans yielded 49 sacks last year, the fifth-highest total in the league, and they also struggled to create space for two-time rushing champion Derrick Henry. Brewer did not exactly help the cause, as he allowed 36 total pressures and committed eight penalties en route to a mediocre 59.9 grade from Pro Football Focus (positioning him 46th among 77 qualified guards).
Still, Carthon saw fit to retain the Texas State product via the second-round RFA tender, and it is possible that Brewer is better-suited to the center position. His performance, and that of the new-look offensive line as a whole, will obviously be critical to Tennessee’s fortunes in 2023.
Saints Announce 11-Man UDFA Class
The Saints have announced an 11-man UDFA class after drafting seven players over the course of the last three days. Here are the undrafted talents who will begin their pursuit of an NFL job with New Orleans:
- LB Nick Anderson, Tulane
- WR Sy Barnett, Davenport
- WR Shaq Davis, South Carolina State
- OL Mark Evans II, Arkansas-Pine Bluff
- K Blake Grupe, Notre Dame
- P Lou Hedley, Miami (FL)
- DB Anthony Johnson, Virginia
- LB Anfernee Orji, Vanderbilt
- OL Alex Pihlstrom, Illinois
- RB SaRodorick Thompson Jr., Texas Tech
- TE Joel Wilson, Central Michigan
Two of the above players, Davis and Orji, received guarantees in excess of $200K, as Greg Auman of FOX Sports tweets.
Davis has the size (6-5, 217 lbs.) and length that could allow him to find success in the pros, and he showed off serious big-play ability at the collegiate level, averaging roughly 20.4 yards per catch over four years at South Carolina State. That included 45 catches for 934 yards and 11 TDs in 2022.
That production, however, came against FCS competition. While the size of Davis’ guarantee indicates he was a priority signing, there are elements of his game — like his issue with drops — that he will need to clean up in order to have a shot at cracking the roster.
Orji, meanwhile, was a three-year starter for the SEC’s Commodores, as well as a team captain. Despite averaging nearly 100 total tackles and 10 tackles for loss over the past two seasons, he also missed a lot of tackles and does not have the speed that would make him an elite defender in today’s NFL. Still, there was a chance that he would hear his name called on Day 3 of the draft, and he should have a decent chance of sticking as a backup defender or special teamer.
Jets Could Re-Sign LB Kwon Alexander
The Jets are open to re-signing linebacker Kwon Alexander, as ESPN’s Rich Cimini tweets. Cimini adds that the two sides have remained in touch throughout the offseason.
Alexander, who is entering his age-28 season, agreed to a veteran-minimum contract with New York last July. In his first season as a member of Gang Green, the LSU product appeared in all 17 games (12 starts) and posted 69 tackles. Pro Football Focus assigned him an overall score of 63.0, which positioned him as the 44th-best LB among 81 qualifiers.
With Aaron Rodgers now in the fold, the Jets profile as legitimate championship contenders in 2023. Though the club missed the postseason last year, it still fielded the fourth-best defense in the league in terms of both yards allowed and points allowed, and after re-signing Quincy Williams in March, it stands to reason that the Jets would want to keep the third member of their C.J. Mosley/Williams/Alexander linebacker triumvirate intact. The fact that Alexander could likely be had for another modest contract — there have been no public reports of outside interest in him this offseason — makes him more attractive.
Plus, the draft did not do much to bolster New York’s LB corps. GM Joe Douglas did add a linebacker, Western Michigan’s Zaire Barnes, in the fifth round, but Barnes does not profile as a player that will immediately command significant snaps on the defensive side of the ball. He joins 2021 Day 3 draftees Jamien Sherwood and Hamsah Nasirildeen and reserve/futures signee Chazz Surratt as the only other ‘backers on the roster. That group combined to play 42 defensive snaps in 2022.
Another selling point for Alexander is that he holds up well in coverage. having yielded QB ratings of 81.5 and 89.5 over the past two seasons. He may not be the same player he was in 2017, when he earned his first and only Pro Bowl nod, but he remains a capable defender who is already familiar with Robert Saleh‘s high-end defense.
Bengals HC Zac Taylor On RB Joe Mixon: “His Future Is Here With The Team”
For the past several months, there have been rumblings that Joe Mixon‘s time with the Bengals could soon be up. However, in his post-draft presser yesterday, head coach Zac Taylor indicated that the seventh-year running back would remain in Cincinnati in 2023.
“[Mixon’s] future is here with the team,” Taylor told reporters, including Ben Baby of ESPN.com. “I like Joe Mixon.”
Those comments are certainly more definitive than those made by VP of player personnel Duke Tobin and executive VP Katie Blackburn earlier this offseason. When asked whether the club would retain Mixon, Tobin said, “I don’t know,” and Blackburn was similarly noncommittal. Several weeks ago, a report from Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic suggested that Mixon will ultimately be asked to take a pay cut.
A pay cut may be the best outcome for both sides, as the Bengals would retain a 2021 Pro Bowler while reducing his $12.8MM cap number, and Mixon would avoid becoming a late addition to a free agent market that has proven quite unfriendly to running backs. Plus, it’s not as though he would be hitting the market with a great deal of momentum; he posted a subpar 3.9 YPC average in 2022 and is presently facing a misdemeanor charge of aggravated menacing.
If player and team do not discuss or come to terms on a salary reduction, the Bengals could release Mixon with a post-June 1 designation and shave over $10MM off their 2023 ledger. However, that would put a great deal of pressure on Trayveon Williams (47 career carries), Chris Evans (17 career carries), and fifth-round rookie Chase Brown.
If Cincy had been able to re-sign Samaje Perine, perhaps the club would have been more inclined to move on from Mixon and deploy a Perine/Brown tandem at the top of the RB depth chart. Or, if a blue-chip prospect like Bijan Robinson had fallen to them in this year’s draft, the Bengals might have been comfortable with such a player taking over RB1 duties right away. As it stands, however, it would seem that a team with Super Bowl aspirations would not immediately hand the running back reins to Brown, no matter how high his upside might be. So Taylor’s comments with respect to Mixon, who has joined the team for voluntary workouts, make sense.
For his part, Brown — a Doak Walker Award finalist who rushed for 1,643 yards and posted 13 total TDs in his final season with Illinois — is excited to work with Mixon.
“They have a great running back there right now, Joe Mixon, who I grew up watching and watched a lot through college,” Brown said. “So I’m excited to come in, learn from him, learn from the coaching staff and produce on Sundays.”
Packers Open To Re-Signing K Mason Crosby, S Adrian Amos
The Packers selected a kicker, Auburn’s Anders Carlson, in the sixth round of this year’s draft. That has led to plenty of justified speculation that Mason Crosby‘s tenure in Green Bay has come to an end, though GM Brian Gutekunst indicated that is not necessarily the case.
Gutekunst told reporters, including Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, that he has not ruled out a new contract for Crosby — who is presently a free agent — and that he just “really liked” Carlson (Twitter link). Still, it would seem that only injury to, or underperformance from, Carlson and reserve/futures signee Parker White would open the door to a Crosby return, as Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com suggests.
Carlson, the younger brother of Raiders K Daniel Carlson, is the first kicker Green Bay has drafted since Crosby himself was selected in the sixth round of the 2007 draft. Crosby has operated as the club’s kicker ever since, though he has never received Pro Bowl or All-Pro honors. In 2022, his 86.2% field goal conversion rate was the fourth-highest mark of his career, but it was a middle-of-the-pack showing overall. He also made just one of four attempts from 50+ yards.
Anders Carlson, meanwhile, does not have a particularly notable college resume. Over five seasons with the Tigers, he made just 71.8% of his attempts, which included a 68.4% success rate across his last two collegiate years. He also sustained a torn ACL in November 2021, so he is not necessarily a surefire bet to make the Packers’ roster.
Gutekunst also said that he remains open to a reunion with safety Adrian Amos and that he has stayed in contact with Amos’ camp (Twitter link via Matt Schneidman of The Athletic). We heard last week that Darnell Savage would get the opportunity to reclaim his starting safety job, and even if he is successful in that regard, there is room for another backend defender to compete with the likes of Tarvarius Moore and Anthony Johnson Jr., who was added in the seventh round of the draft yesterday.
Amos garnered interest from the Ravens this offseason, but his free agency stay has otherwise been a quiet one. While he set a career-high with 102 tackles in 2022, he earned a poor 53.4 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, which has generally been high on his work throughout the course of his career.
Dolphins Reached Out To OT Taylor Lewan
The Dolphins reached out to free agent OT Taylor Lewan over a month ago, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). There have been no conversations between the two sides since that time.
Lewan, 32 in July, was released by the Titans earlier this year after nine seasons in Tennessee. He made three consecutive Pro Bowls from 2016-18 and maintained his usual high standard of play in 2019. Unfortunately, injuries began to take their toll thereafter.
Lewan suffered ACL tears in 2020 and 2022, and he said before his release that he was contemplating retirement. Shortly before this week’s draft, the blocker himself indicated that the Dolphins had “called” him (via Omar Kelly of SI.com), but as noted by Jackson, that communication was some time ago and appears to have been more exploratory in nature.
Nonetheless, assuming Lewan does want to continue his playing career, he could begin to receive more interest now that the draft is in the books and teams have a better idea of what their offensive lines will look like in 2023. For their part, the ‘Fins had just four selections in this year’s draft and used their seventh-round pick on Michigan OT Ryan Hayes. That will hardly preclude GM Chris Grier from continuing to look for veteran upgrades if he is so inclined.
Though Grier recently indicated that the team still views 2020 first-rounder Austin Jackson as its starting right tackle, Miami reportedly showed interest in free agent OT George Fant this offseason. And, given that he played just two games in 2022 and has generally underperformed relative to his draft status, Jackson is not exactly a sure thing at this point.
Lewan has never taken a snap at right tackle in his career, but with southpaw Tua Tagovailoa under center, the RT on the Dolphins’ line operates as the club’s blindside blocker. In light of Tagovailoa’s concussion concerns, that role is especially critical.
Last year’s free agent acquisition Terron Armstead earned Pro Bowl acclaim in his first year in South Beach and is entrenched as Miami’s left tackle.
Giants GM Joe Schoen On Contract Talks With Saquon Barkley, Dexter Lawrence
APRIL 30: As expected, the Giants and Barkley will resume contract talks now that the draft is over, as Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com writes. The two sides did, in fact, touch base last week and will now attempt to find some middle ground on a long-term accord. Big Blue selected a running back, Oklahoma’s Eric Gray, in the fifth round, but as Schwartz notes, Schoen told Barkley before the draft of his intention to pick up a mid-round RB so that Barkley would not be blindsided.
APRIL 23: The Giants have two standouts who have stayed away from the start of the club’s offseason program: DT Dexter Lawrence and RB Saquon Barkley. As Paul Schwartz of the New York Post observes, GM Joe Schoen is taking a markedly different approach in his negotiations with those two players.
With respect to Barkley, negotiations are non-existent at this time. The Giants have until July 17 to work out a long-term deal with Barkley, who was slapped with the franchise tag in March and who has yet to sign the franchise tender, worth $10.1MM. Obviously, there is still plenty of time for player and team to strike an accord that will keep Barkley under club control for the next few seasons, and discussions may resume once this week’s draft has concluded. Still, Schoen’s tone in his comments on the two-time Pro Bowler is noteworthy.
When asked if he is optimistic that Barkley will suit up for the start of the 2023 season, Schoen said, “you have to ask him. I’m not sure. I don’t know what his plan is.”
The Giants offered Barkley a multiyear contract worth $13MM per year in advance of the franchise tag deadline, though the guarantee and cash flow components of New York’s proposals have never been reported. And, while Barkley has said that he is not necessarily seeking to better Christian McCaffrey‘s $16MM AAV — the top mark among running backs — it has also been reported that he wants to at least be in that ballpark.
Clearly, there is a gap between the two sides, and it is unclear how wide that gap is. The suppressed RB market is hurting Barkley, who may ultimately have to do more compromising than the Giants if he wants to avoid playing the 2023 campaign on the tag. Of course, he could simply choose to not sign his tender and sit out the season, though that tactic ultimately proved to be the wrong choice for the last player to try it, Le’Veon Bell.
Schoen said that he has not spoken to Barkley’s camp in three or four weeks. “When we had the conversations with Saquon it was known we were going to get to a certain point and then we were gonna move on and regroup at some other time,” the second-year GM said. Schoen added that the Barkley situation will not influence his decision to select or not select a running back in the draft.
Lawrence, meanwhile, is presently scheduled to play out the 2023 season on the fifth-year option of his rookie deal, which will pay him $12.4MM. Reports last month indicated that progress was being made on an extension, and Schoen confirmed that there continues to be productive dialogue with Lawrence’s representation. Schwartz indicated that Lawrence is targeting a four-year pact worth $22MM per season.
In 2022, Lawrence set career-highs in tackles (68), sacks (7.5), and QB hits (28) en route to Pro Bowl and second-team All-Pro acclaim. Pro Football Focus ranked Lawrence second among 127 qualifying interior defenders, and he earned position-best marks for his run defense and pass rushing.
Contract Details: James, Lawson, Muse
Here are a few details on contracts that have been signed in the last several weeks:
- Richie James, WR (Chiefs): One year. $1.08MM (veteran minimum for a player with four to six years of service time). $400K guaranteed, including $152.5K signing bonus. Despite a career year in 2022 as part of the Giants’ depleted WR corps, James had to settle for a veteran minimum accord (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of KPRC2).
- Shaq Lawson, DE (Bills): One year. $1.165MM (veteran minimum for a player with seven or more years of service time). $300K guaranteed, including $152.5K signing bonus (Twitter link via Wilson). Lawson was unable to parlay his increased role in the second half of the 2022 season — which included two playoff starts — into anything more than a veteran minimum deal.
- Tanner Muse, LB (Steelers): One year. $1.01MM (veteran minimum for a player with three years of service time). Twitter link via Wilson. Muse worked primarily on special teams for the Seahawks in 2022, but he saw the first defensive snaps of his career towards the end of the season and will look to carve out a rotational/ST role for Pittsburgh. Seattle non-tendered him in March.
NFC South Notes: Campbell, Maye, Sanders
Defensive lineman Calais Campbell has accomplished a great deal in his NFL career, though he has never won a Super Bowl ring. So it came as something of a surprise when the six-time Pro Bowler, who is entering his age-37 season, agreed to sign with the Falcons in March after the Ravens made him a cap casualty. After all, Atlanta has not made the playoffs since 2018 and will be starting Desmond Ridder — a 2022 third-round choice who made just four starts in his rookie campaign — at quarterback.
Still, when this offseason arrived, the Falcons had free agency money to spend for the first time in the Terry Fontenot/Arthur Smith era, and they have been especially aggressive in bolstering their defense. Jessie Bates, Mike Hughes, Kaden Elliss, and David Onyemata were signed, and as Mike Rothstein of ESPN.com writes, adding those talents and a player like Campbell supports the message that Fontenot and Smith want to convey: that Atlanta is ready to compete and is a prime destination for high-end talent.
Campbell acknowledged that the uncertainty of the NFC South played a role in his decision (Twitter link via Rothstein), and he believes that the Falcons will indeed contend for a playoff spot in 2023. He spoke glowingly of his meetings with Smith, Fontenot, and new defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, and he also watched tape of Ridder. All of that turned the Falcons from a team that was not on Campbell’s radar into the team for which he eschewed an extended free agency courtship.
Now for more from the NFC South, starting with several more items on Campbell and the Falcons:
- Campbell said that more teams were interested in his services in 2023 than during his free agency stay in 2022, which ultimately concluded with a new deal with Baltimore. He also said he was “close” to signing with another club this year before agreeing to terms with the Falcons, though that mystery team did not make him feel the same way Atlanta did. In addition to his meetings with the Jaguars and Falcons, he had visits with the Jets and Bills on the docket, and he told CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson during an episode of The Crew podcast that Aaron Rodgers — who is expected to join the Jets in the near future — texted him and implored him to sign with Gang Green (Twitter link via Ari Meirov of The33rdTeam.com).
- As Campbell explained in the above-referenced podcast, the Jets tried to get a deal done with him even before his would-be visit with New York, so perhaps they were the team that he nearly picked over the Falcons. And, per Rothstein, another factor that worked in the Falcons’ favor is that Atlanta plans to use him as a “true D-end,” meaning that he will line up on the edge on first and second downs.
- Saints safety Marcus Maye was arrested in September on a charge of aggravated assault with a firearm. As Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk wrote last month, those charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence. As most NFL fans know by now, the absence of criminal charges does not mean that a player will avoid league punishment, but since the time of Williams’ report, nothing has emerged on that front.
- Running back Miles Sanders signed a four-year, $25MM contract with the Panthers in March, a deal that features $13MM in guaranteed money. Sanders indicated that the presence of Duce Staley, whom Carolina recently hired as its assistant head coach & running backs coach, was a big reason for his decision to join the Panthers (Twitter link via ESPN’s David Newton). Sanders spent the first four years of his career (2019-22) with the Eagles, and Staley was Philadelphia’s assistant head coach and running backs coach for the first two of those seasons.