Logan Ryan Files Grievance Against Giants
Safety Logan Ryan was signed by the Buccaneers in March, one day after being released by the Giants. Per Dan Duggan of The Athletic, Ryan has filed a grievance against Big Blue (Twitter link).
The Ryan release was not necessarily part of new Giants GM Joe Schoen‘s efforts to shed payroll and make his club cap-compliant; the transaction was only expected to net about $775K of cap space for 2022, since Ryan was not designated a post-June 1 cut. Instead, parting ways with Ryan had more to do with the fact that he is 31 and was deemed to be an imperfect fit in New York’s new defensive regime (and it did clear $12.25MM off the books for 2023).
Ryan was due an $8.5MM salary in 2022, and $5.5MM of that figure was fully-guaranteed. The remaining $3MM, which is at issue in the grievance, was guaranteed for injury. As Duggan reports in a separate tweet, Ryan underwent postseason finger surgery, so his position is that the injury guarantee should kick in and that he is entitled to an additional $3MM. Until the matter is resolved, 40% of the disputed amount, or $1.2MM, will remain on the Giants’ cap.
Schoen has just two safeties on the roster at the moment (2019 fourth-rounder Julian Love and 2020 second-rounder Xavier McKinney). The Giants currently hold the Nos. 5 and 7 overall picks and will therefore have a good chance to draft star Notre Dame safety/do-it-all weapon Kyle Hamilton, but with plenty of other holes at more valuable positions, the club may choose to pass on the former Golden Domer and address its safety needs with later picks or in post-draft free agency.
Ryan, meanwhile, went from a rebuilding team to a championship contender. By reuniting with former Patriots teammate Tom Brady in Tampa, Ryan will have a chance to add a third Super Bowl ring to his collection as part of a safety group that includes Antoine Winfield Jr., Mike Edwards, and fellow free agent acquisition Keanu Neal.
Steelers, Saints Likely To Take QB In First Round?
As those who even casually follow the NFL predraft process know by now, this year’s collegiate class includes an intriguing but flawed set of quarterbacks, which has led to seemingly unprecedented variance in how executives throughout the league are evaluating the prospects who play the most important position in sports.
ESPN draftnik Todd McShay said, “[w]hat’s wild about this year’s class — more so than any previous year that I can remember — is the difference of opinions when I get off the phone with one guy in the league versus the next guy. And I’m not just talking about scouts, I’m talking general managers, guys who are making the decisions” (via Mike Triplett of ESPN.com).
Per McShay, one club has Ole Miss’ Matt Corral ranked as the top passer in the class, while several teams have Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder at the top of their respective draft boards. Liberty’s Malik Willis has frequently been mentioned as the QB with the highest ceiling, and while McShay suggests some teams prefer Willis to his draftmates, other clubs have Willis as the fourth-best signal-caller. Pittsburgh’s Kenny Pickett, meanwhile, is generally viewed as either the best or second-best quarterback.
As one might expect in light of these differences in QB evaluations, there have been plenty of conflicting reports regarding how many passers might actually be selected in the first round. On Friday, Matt Miller of ESPN.com reported that it would not be a surprise to see Pickett as the only QB picked on Day 1, but Tony Pauline of Pro Football Network wrote on Saturday that the Saints and Steelers look like “sure bets” to nab a first-round quarterback, and that at least three QBs will hear their name called among the first 32 picks.
The Saints now have two first-round choices (Nos. 16 and 19 overall) by virtue of their trade with the Eagles earlier this month. McShay and others have opined that New Orleans did not make that move with the goal of selecting a quarterback, but it certainly puts the club in good position to do exactly that. Indeed, one thing that all evaluators do seem to agree on is that this year’s highest-profile QBs are not top-10 prospects, and are actually mid- to late-first-round talents. As such, even if the Saints do not want to package their two first-rounders in an effort to move into the top-10 and assure themselves of the opportunity to nab their preferred passer, they theoretically could still have their pick of the litter just by staying put (though the premium that teams place on the quarterback position suggests that such a strategy would be a risky one if New Orleans really does want to come away from the draft with its highest-rated quarterback in tow).
The Saints took top-30 visits with Corral, Pickett, Willis, and UNC passer Sam Howell, and that same quartet also met with the Steelers. Pittsburgh has heavily scouted this year’s quarterbacks and is said to prefer Pickett, though ESPN.com’s Jordan Reid (in the same Triplett piece linked above) reports that the Steelers are high on Ridder — with whom they also visited — and could be poised to pounce on the former Bearcat if he falls past the Saints.
Pauline writes that both Ridder and Corral are building first-round momentum, and he also hears that the Seahawks — who presently hold the No. 9 overall selection — could try to move into the back end of the first round to pick up a passer to groom behind Drew Lock. Earlier reports maintained that Seattle could use its top-10 choice on a QB, but Pauline’s piece implies that the club has other ideas for that pick. Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reiterates that the ‘Hawks truly think Lock can be a legitimate NFL starter, which suggests that if team brass is targeting a quarterback in the draft, such a player would be acquired with the No. 40 or No. 41 pick or by packaging one or both of those picks to trade up 10 spots or so.
Ravens GM Eric DeCosta on DL, OLB Needs: “We’re Not Done Yet”
The Ravens thought they had brought pass rusher Za’Darius Smith back into the fold in March, only to see him back out of his deal and then sign with the Vikings. Baltimore also made a strong offer for linebacker Bobby Wagner, who chose to sign with the Rams instead.
While the team mitigated those disappointments to some degree by agreeing to terms with Calais Campbell and Josh Bynes this week, GM Eric DeCosta is not kidding himself about the team’s front seven. In discussing his OLB and DL needs, DeCosta said, “we’re not done yet” (Twitter link via Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic).
DeCosta made that comment prior to the Campbell signing, which gives him a defensive front comprised of Michael Pierce, Derek Wolfe, and Campbell, a group that features age and injury concerns. 2020 draftees Justin Madubuike and Broderick Washington offer more youthful support, but Madubuike did not take the step forward last season that many expected, and Pro Football Focus’ metrics did not think highly of either player. As such, even after re-upping Campbell, another DL might be in the cards. Longtime Raven Brandon Williams is still a free agent, and the team recently met with Eddie Goldman, a six-year starter for the Bears.
At this point, the pass rush is a bigger concern. 2021 first-rounder Odafe Oweh showed promise in his rookie campaign, but aside from him and Tyus Bowser — who is more of a jack-of-all-trades player than a true pass rusher — the cupboard is largely bare. Smith would have represented an ideal bookend to Oweh, and now the FA market includes players like Justin Houston (who played reasonably well in his first Ravens season last year), Jadeveon Clowney, Trey Flowers, Carlos Dunlap, Jason Pierre-Paul, and Jerry Hughes. Not all of those players are perfect scheme fits for Baltimore, and they all come with age, injury, and/or injury issues.
The Ravens could still elect to sign a member of that group, and the club is always on the lookout for cap casualties from other organizations. DeCosta has also shown a willingness to be aggressive on the trade market. Before making any move for a veteran player, however, Baltimore may first see what materializes in the draft. The team is interested in Oregon edge defender Kayvon Thibodeaux, who could fall to the team’s No. 14 overall selection, and it will be interesting to see if DeCosta prioritizes his potential need for an offensive tackle over his need for a pass rusher.
Eagles Notes: Cox, Lurie, Kirk
The Eagles released longtime DT Fletcher Cox last month to avoid having $18MM of what he was due under his prior contract becoming fully-guaranteed. The club then re-signed him to a one-year, $14MM contract several days later, which, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer, is “real” (meaning that Cox will actually earn that money and that the $14MM figure is not inflated by incentives). However, the deal does include two void years to flatten the cap charge, which was especially important since the release already created considerable dead money on the Eagles’ books for the 2022-23 seasons.
Even though Cox is coming off a season in which his play showed noticeable signs of decline and in which he publicly complained about the club’s defensive scheme, his $14MM payout is still $4MM more than what any other free agent interior D-lineman received on a per-year basis this offseason. That has led to plenty of questions about why the Eagles authorized such a contract, but owner Jeffrey Lurie suggested other clubs were willing to pony up for the six-time Pro Bowler, thereby necessitating the financial outlay.
McLane reports that the Eagles did call at least three teams in March to discuss a Cox trade, but just like their in-season trade talks in 2021, the more recent discussions were undermined by Cox’s prior contract and GM Howie Roseman‘s high asking price.
Now for more out of Philadelphia:
- In the same piece linked above, McLane details the growing role of Lurie’s son, Julian Lurie, within the organization. Now 26, the younger Lurie participated in the NFL’s two-year program for prospective executives upon his graduation from Harvard, he took part in the Eagles’ head coaching interviews in 2021 — ultimately advising his father as the team transitioned from Doug Pederson to Nick Sirianni — and even spearheaded the interviews for the team’s analytics department. Assuming he wants to take up the mantle, it seems that Julian Lurie will someday succeed his 70-year-old father at the top of the franchise.
- In a piece exploring whether Jeffrey Lurie is too involved in his team’s personnel decisions, which will be of particular interest to Eagles fans, McLane reports that, in 2018, the team was prepared to select one of two receivers in the second round: Ohio State’s Parris Campbell or Stanford’s JJ Arcega-Whiteside. Roseman and then-VP of player personnel Joe Douglas wanted Campbell, but Lurie preferred Arcega-Whiteside, and after Lurie successfully curried Pederson’s support, Roseman and Douglas felt compelled to go along with their wishes. That has led to broader questions about whether Lurie really values Roseman as a GM as much as he says he does, or if he simply likes that he can use Roseman as a “conduit” to the team.
- The Eagles have not yet acquired a cornerback this offseason, and while Sirianni hyped the unproven contingent of players behind CB1 Darius Slay on the current depth chart — a group that includes Zech McPhearson and Tay Gowan — McLane says the team will almost certainly add a CB or two at some point. The Eagles will hold a “30” visit with top CB prospect Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, and while Gardner may be off the board by the time Philadelphia is on the clock with its No. 15 overall pick, a player like Washington’s Trent McDuffie or LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr. could be an option should Roseman decide to select a first-round corner for the first time in his history as a GM.
- The Eagles have taken some swings at high-profile FA targets this offseason but have mostly come up short (with all due apologies to Haason Reddick and Zach Pascal). In addition to his pursuit of receivers like Allen Robinson and Robert Woods, Roseman also made an offer to former Cardinals wideout Christian Kirk, as McLane writes in a separate article. Kirk, though, received a four-year, $72MM deal from the Jaguars, a move that many have decried as more desperate spending on the part of Jacksonville. Though Kirk would doubtlessly have been an asset to Philadelphia’s WR corps, his $18MM AAV presently looks like an overpay.
Kayvon Thibodeaux Still In The Mix For Lions’ No. 2 Pick
Oregon edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux, once considered a surefire top-5 pick in this month’s draft, is reportedly in danger of falling out of the top-10. That is largely due to concerns not about his physical abilities, but about his effort and coachability. As Justin Rogers of the Detroit News writes, Thibodeaux said at this year’s scouting combine, “I tell a coach that there’s nothing he can tell me that I don’t already know, right? It’s because I’m honest with myself and I watch the tape. So if you’re a student of the game you know what you can get better at.”
However, the Lions could save Thibodeaux from his rumored tumble down draft boards. According to Rogers, Thibodeaux is still “very much in the conversation” for Detroit’s No. 2 overall pick.
The Lions have a clear need for a pass rusher, which is why they have been connected to Thibodeaux and Michigan edge defender Aidan Hutchinson throughout the predraft process. Thibodeaux’s collegiate production — which includes three sacks in seven games in 2020 and seven sacks in 10 games in 2021 — has not been enough to offset the questions about his intangibles, but it should be noted that, last season, he posted those seven sacks and 12 total tackles for loss while playing through an ankle injury.
His size (6-5, 250), and impressive combine performance are further evidence of his high ceiling, and the Lions have thoroughly evaluated him. The club met with him at the combine, had GM Brad Holmes and others in attendance at his pro day, and will bring him in for a top-30 visit this week. Head coach Dan Campbell said of Thibodeaux, “[h]ey, listen, he’s an explosive athlete. He’s a playmaker. He’s got a good, quick first step. I mean, he’s something else. He’s pretty special on tape.”
The Lions are willing to trade down from the No. 2 pick, but if they keep it, Campbell is looking for a player who can contribute from Day 1 (in other words, probably not a QB prospect from a 2022 class whose shortcomings have been one of this year’s most-discussed draft topics). “That’s really what you’re trying to acquire, a guy that you can feel like can come in and he’s going to be able to have solid production for you,” Campbell recently said (via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press). “I mean, that’s kind of the idea. We need to feel like, all right, this guy comes in, it may take just a little bit, but you’d like to believe by the time you hit your first game that this player’s starting for you and is going to be able to produce.”
Though Campbell did not rule out the possibility of selecting a quarterback with the No. 2 pick if the team falls in love with a passer, he also suggested that having an elite QB is not necessarily a prerequisite for long-term success. When combined with his desire to nab an immediate contributor with his top draft choice, Campbell’s sentiments leave the door open for a Thibodeaux selection, though there are plenty of other non-quarterback prospects who figure to make an impact right away.
Latest On Dolphins’ Pursuit Of Tom Brady, Sean Payton
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk continues to beat the Tom Brady-to-Miami drum. In January 2020, just weeks before Brady was set to hit free agency and perhaps join an organization other than the Patriots for the first time in his two-decade career, Florio wrote that the Dolphins were the team that was generating the most buzz with respect to a Brady signing. Even then, the PFT creator reported that there was talk of Brady also becoming a minority owner of the ‘Fins.
In February 2022, Florio wrote that Miami hoped to hire former Saints head coach Sean Payton as its new HC this year, and that the club also planned to go after Brady and install him as the starting quarterback. Then, Brian Flores, who was fired as the Dolphins’ head coach in January, filed a racial discrimination lawsuit against the team, also naming the Giants and Broncos as defendants. According to Florio, the suit forced the Dolphins to scrap the Payton/Brady plan, and Brady announced his retirement on the same day the suit was filed.
Several days ago, Florio reported that Brady was indeed “very close” to joining the Dolphins, and that he would have first done so as a minority owner (other reporters have echoed the sentiment that Brady may want to own a part of the franchise). At that point, the Dolphins would have acquired Payton’s rights from the Saints and Brady’s rights from the Buccaneers and would have had the enviable HC-QB tandem they were seeking all along. Of course, it may not have been so simple; Florio acknowledged in his February 2022 piece that New Orleans declined Miami’s request to talk to Payton, even after Payton elected to step away from the Saints. Dolphins GM Chris Grier confirmed as much, and Payton himself said he would probably not have been interested in the Miami gig.
If Florio is accurate, however, this could all resurface in 2023. When discussing the ownership component of these rumors, Florio continues to emphasize Brady’s close relationship with Bruce Beal, who is Dolphins owner Stephen Ross‘ right-hand man. As far as Brady the player is concerned, it’s worth noting that one of Flores’ allegations in his suit is that Ross wanted Flores to recruit a “prominent quarterback” — generally believed to be Brady — at the end of the 2019 season, which would have contravened the league’s tampering rules.
So, if Brady wants to continue his playing career next year but wants to leave the Bucs — Florio remains adamant that Brady’s “retirement” was simply an attempt to leave Tampa and that he only circled back to the team after it became clear he would not be able to join the Dolphins or 49ers — then perhaps Ross will throw his hat in the ring again, depending on how Tua Tagovailoa performs in 2022. And, regardless of whether Brady ever plays his home games in South Beach, it at least seems like a strong possibility that he could one day own a piece of the Dolphins.
With Mike McDaniel having just been hired as Miami’s HC, it is perhaps less likely that Ross & Co. will seek to woo Payton next year, but given Ross’ history of seeking high-profile candidates for his head coaching post, such a pursuit probably should not be ruled out.
Ravens Notes: Wagner, Dobbins, Edwards
The Ravens tried to sign LB Bobby Wagner, the former Seahawks star who was released by Seattle last month. On March 28, we heard that Baltimore had submitted an offer that it believed was “very competitive” vis-à-vis the proposal that Wagner received from the Rams, and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported yesterday that the Ravens had offered a two-year, $18MM contract.
At first blush, that looks to be a far cry from the five-year, $50MM deal Wagner ultimately signed with Los Angeles. But we are still awaiting details on the structure of that agreement, and Florio hears that Wagner will get paid $17MM over the first two years of the deal, with “small guarantees” in the second year. If that’s the case, then the Ravens’ offer — the structure of which is also unknown — may well have been as competitive as the team thought. Perhaps Wagner, an LA native, simply wanted to stay home and play for the defending champions.
Baltimore, meanwhile, has now had near misses with Wagner and Za’Darius Smith in recent weeks, leaving the club with plenty of work still to do in the front seven.
Now for several more items out of Charm City:
- The Ravens’ 2021 fortunes were severely undermined by injury, including season-ending ACL tears suffered by running backs J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards before Week 1. Head coach John Harbaugh recently told reporters, including Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, that both players are making progress, but that they will likely start this year’s training camp on the active/PUP list (Twitter link). Given how important Dobbins and Edwards are to Baltimore’s run-oriented attack, it makes sense that the team would play it safe with the top two members of its RB depth chart.
- The Ravens have hired Kerry Dixon as their assistant quarterbacks coach, per a team announcement. This will be Dixon’s first NFL gig. The former Baylor and Hampton quarterback spent the past 15 seasons as a collegiate assistant, and he served as Georgia Tech’s wide receivers coach from 2019-21. He will team with James Urban to get the most out of star passer Lamar Jackson, whose contract status remains one of the biggest storylines in Baltimore.
- Even if Smith had followed through on his commitment to the Ravens, Baltimore may have been eyeing an edge rusher with its first-round pick (No. 14 overall) in this year’s draft. With Smith out of the picture, GM Eric DeCosta may be even more inclined to enhance his pass rush, and polarizing prospect Kayvon Thibodeaux is on the team’s radar.
- Harbaugh, now the third-longest-tenured HC in the league, recently signed an extension that will keep him on the Ravens’ sidelines through the 2025 season.
Giants Have Done “A Ton Of Work” On OT Charles Cross
The Giants, who hold the No. 5 and No. 7 overall selections in this month’s draft, are well-positioned to address two of their biggest needs — offensive tackle and edge rusher — with a top collegiate prospect. Per Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post, Big Blue has done “a ton of work” on Mississippi State tackle Charles Cross, one of the top OTs in the class.
Cross is not considered to be on the same level as Alabama tackle Evan Neal or NC State blocker Ikem Ekwonu in terms of overall talent, but one scouting source told Dunleavy that Neal and Cross are the best pure left tackles in the class. While all three prospects project well at right tackle, Ekwonu is better-suited to the right side, and he also has the ceiling of an elite guard.
There is a chance that Neal and Ekwonu, or at least one of the pair, will be available for the Giants when they are on the clock with the No. 5 pick. In that scenario, New York could take the highest-rated OL on its board, or it could simply opt to fill a different need, secure in the knowledge that one of those two players and/or Cross will still be there for the taking at No. 7 (assuming, of course, that a club with a Top-4 selection does not nab Cross). But if the first four picks skew towards O-linemen rather than, say, pass rushers, then new GM Joe Schoen may need to pounce on a protector for QB Daniel Jones.
If he ends up with Cross, an accomplished pass blocker who would complete a strong bookend with 2020 first-rounder Andrew Thomas, Schoen should be happy, regardless of which pick he uses. In 719 pass-blocking snaps in 2021, Cross allowed just 16 pressures.
Schoen recently passed along several injury updates on two starting-caliber players already on the roster. LB Blake Martinez (ACL) and WR Sterling Shepard (Achilles), both of whom recently accepted pay cuts, will hopefully be back in action by August, per Schoen (Twitter link via Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com). OL Nick Gates, who started all 16 games for the Giants in 2020 but who suffered a career-threatening leg fracture in Week 2 of the 2021 season, may be ready for training camp, as Raanan tweets.
Panthers WR Shi Smith Arrested
Panthers WR Shi Smith was arrested in South Carolina at the end of March and charged with possession with intent to distribute marijuana, unlawful carrying of a handgun, and speeding, as Joshua Kuhn of WSPA.com reported.
The current collective bargaining agreement is not nearly as harsh as its predecessor with respect to marijuana usage, though if the intent to distribute charge is substantiated, that would obviously be a very different story. The unlawful carrying of a handgun could also lead to league discipline.
Smith, 23, was selected by Carolina in the sixth round of the 2021 draft. Like many Day 3 choices, his rookie-year contributions were fairly limited, as he appeared in just 85 offensive snaps and 24 special teams snaps. In six games, Smith caught six passes for 104 yards, including a 63-yard reception. Assuming the Panthers elect to retain him, he may be hard-pressed to see more action in 2022, as the club is already rostering D.J. Moore, Robby Anderson, and 2021 second-rounder Terrace Marshall, and recently added Rashard Higgins in free agency.
As David Newton of ESPN.com writes, Smith was released on a total of $6K bond ($5K for the drug charge and $1K for the gun charge). His first court appearance is set for June 13, the second day of the Panthers’ mandatory four-day minicamp.
A team spokesperson declined to comment on the situation since it is a pending legal matter.
Deshaun Watson Could Be Suspended For Only Four Games; “No Market” For Baker Mayfield
We recently heard that new Browns QB Deshaun Watson would not end up on the Commissioner’s Exempt list since he will not be criminally charged in connection with the sexual assault allegations for which he is still facing 22 civil suits. And, as Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com writes, the absence of criminal charges may also help Watson avoid a lengthy suspension.
Per Cabot, league investigators will view the grand jury non-indictments as “mitigating factors” when it comes to doling out punishment to the embattled passer. A suspension may not be put in place until the civil matter is resolved — and Cleveland will not pressure Watson to settle the suits — but when the NFL’s investigation concludes and a decision is made, Cabot hears that Watson could be hit with a six-game ban that gets reduced to four games.
That would obviously count as a huge victory for the Browns, who gave up a bounty of draft capital and a market-altering contract to acquire Watson in a move that many pundits have classified as desperate. Winning, though, has a way of rewriting history, and if Watson escapes all of his legal troubles with only a four-game suspension (at least as far as on-field ramifications are concerned), Cleveland will have a very good chance of winning in 2022 and beyond.
Of course, the Browns are still rostering Baker Mayfield, an awkward reality that would become even more awkward if they are forced to retain him throughout the 2022 season. GM Andrew Berry recently said he would be willing to do so, but that surely is just a bit of posturing. Berry obviously wants to trade the former No. 1 overall pick, and he is content to wait until a starting quarterback on another club suffers an injury and creates a QB need for that club. According to Cabot, Berry may need to do just that, because there is “no market” for Mayfield at this point.
Still, Cabot says Berry does not want to give Mayfield away or include one of his own draft picks in a trade to entice another team to assume Mayfield’s contract. She writes that the plan remains to have newly-signed QB Jacoby Brissett, and not Mayfield, operate as the starting signal-caller in the event of a Watson suspension. The one-year deal that Brissett signed with the Browns last month has a base value of $4.65MM, almost all of which ($4.5MM) is guaranteed, as Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network tweets. Brissett will have a chance to earn more via incentives, including, perhaps, play-time incentives that could be realized if/when Brissett stands in for Watson.
One more item on Mayfield: his disenchantment with the Browns was intensified in the wake of a report that surfaced prior to the Watson trade indicating that the team was looking for “an adult” at the quarterback position (thus implying that Mayfield is not, in fact, an adult). Per team owner Jimmy Haslam, that comment did not come from the Cleveland front office (Twitter link via Jeff Schudel of the News-Herald).