QB Notes: Jets, Jackson, Commanders
Out of football since the 2016 season, Colin Kaepernick continues to pursue a comeback. The exiled quarterback wrote a letter to Jets GM Joe Douglas asking for an opportunity to join the team’s practice squad. The letter, as shared by rapper J. Cole (Instagram link), lays out a number of reasons Kaepernick could assist the Jets while making it clear he would be a Zach Wilson contingency plan. Kaepernick cites his ability to offer the Jets’ defense a look at a mobile QB, referencing the advantage that could provide the unit given the dual-threat starters on the team’s schedule. The letter also includes Jim Harbaugh, John Harbaugh and Mark Davis being listed as references. While it is unusual to see a document like this surface, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk confirms it is authentic.
Davis’ team gave the 35-year-old QB a workout last summer, and the former 49ers starter questioned the Raiders preferring Jarrett Stidham and Nick Mullens — the team’s backups at the time — to him. Even though Kaepernick indicated he still trains five days a week for a potential comeback, the book is almost definitely closed for his return to the NFL. He would have profiled as a more realistic option during the late 2010s, but since the 2019 workout snafu in Atlanta, connections to teams have been sparse. Shortly after Aaron Rodgers‘ injury, Kaepernick’s agent contacted the Jets, and a subsequent report indicated no interest existed on the team’s part. The Jets have since signed Trevor Siemian to their P-squad.
Here is the latest from the QB landscape:
- Siemian could dress for the Jets as an emergency third QB, provided he is elevated to the active roster ahead of Saturday’s deadline, but Robert Saleh confirmed (via ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini) the journeyman passer will not be active for Week 4. Wilson and Tim Boyle will be the team’s only active QBs for a third straight game. Siemian has made 30 career starts, including one for the Jets (Week 2, 2019), but could not beat out Jake Browning for the Bengals’ backup job during training camp.
- It took the Ravens nearly 2 1/2 years to extend Lamar Jackson, but when the Eagles’ Jalen Hurts contract surfaced, GM Eric DeCosta made an earnest effort to finish the process. “We had just signed Odell [Beckham Jr.] and the Hurts deal came out. I thought to myself, ‘Why not try again?’” DeCosta said, via The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec (subscription required). “We put some stuff together on paper. There were people who probably weren’t optimistic about our chances. How many players request a trade and then do a long-term deal with their team like a month later? It doesn’t happen very often, but I was optimistic, partly because I know Lamar. I had been with him in Florida. I know what he’s made of and I know what’s important to him.” DeCosta said he had not spoken to Jackson much this offseason, one in which the former MVP requested a trade. The Hurts deal continued to paint the Deshaun Watson fully guaranteed accord as an outlier. Long connected to seeking a fully guaranteed contract, Jackson accepted the Ravens’ offer and signed a five-year, $260MM deal — one that helped shape Justin Herbert and Joe Burrow‘s respective negotiations.
- Eric Bieniemy going from Patrick Mahomes to a Commanders team planning to go with Sam Howell did not represent a deal-breaker for the five-year Chiefs OC. The new NFC East play-caller joined the Commanders in placing a second-round grade on the North Carolina prospect last year, Albert Breer of SI.com notes. A one-time first-round-level prospect prior to a statistical regression as a junior, Howell is off to an uneven start. QBR places the 2022 fifth-rounder 25th through three games, though he has shown some promise early in his QB1 run.
Steelers To Bring Back P Brad Wing
The Steelers held a punting competition this offseason, bringing in Braden Mann to challenge incumbent Pressley Harvin. The team went with the holdover option, becoming the second club to cut Mann this year. But Harvin is now battling an injury.
Harvin sustained a hamstring injury during a strong Week 3 outing in Las Vegas. The Steelers’ contingency plan will involve a blast from the past. Brad Wing, who last punted in an NFL game six years ago, is joining the Steelers on a practice squad deal, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.
Wing spent three seasons with the Giants but began his career with the Steelers, who used him as their primary punter in 2014. The Australian specialist punted in all 16 games for the Steelers during his 2014 rookie season, but the team went in a different direction in 2015. Wing, 32, re-emerged on Pittsburgh’s radar this month, however, working out for the Steelers before Week 2.
This year’s XFL reboot opened the door to Wing resuming his career. He caught on with the twice-relaunched league’s San Antonio Brahmas. He had previously punted in the short-lived Alliance of American Football in 2019. The Giants rostered Wing from 2015-17 but traded for Riley Dixon in 2018, a transaction that came after Wing’s release.
Harvin, who averaged 44.5 yards per punt in 2022, is off to a nice start. His three-game average checks in at 47.2. While Wing only cleared 45 yards per boot once during his four-year NFL run in the 2010s, he led the XFL with a 47.8-yard average this year. Harvin being unable to go would bring about an interesting chapter in Steelers special teams annals, with Wing now in position to suit up nine years after his previous Pittsburgh cameo.
Raiders To Sign OLB Malik Reed
The Raiders’ pass-rushing plan has changed since the beginning of the month. Chandler Jones is not presently in the picture, with concerning off-field issues leading the former All-Pro to the team’s reserve/NFI list. First-round pick Tyree Wilson has not started in Jones’ place yet.
A former AFC West sack artist will be part of Las Vegas’ equation as of Wednesday. The Raiders are adding Malik Reed, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. This is a practice squad agreement, but the increased P-squad flexibility in recent years has led to these deals often serving as bridges to the active roster.
Reed spent three years with the Broncos, working as a regular sub for a team that could not keep Von Miller and Bradley Chubb healthy at the same time for most of Vic Fangio‘s HC tenure. After signing Randy Gregory and drafting Nik Bonitto last year, the Broncos traded Reed to the Steelers, with whom he played a rotational role. Reed ended up a contract-year one-and-done with the Steelers and rejoined Fangio with the Dolphins this offseason, but Miami did not keep the former UDFA on its active roster after cutdown day last month.
This will mark a return to Nevada for Reed, who played collegiately at the University of Nevada-Reno. Reed, 27, posted 13 sacks between the 2020 and ’21 seasons. Although Chubb was invited to the 2020 Pro Bowl, Reed’s eight sacks paced the Broncos that season. Reid has worked exclusively as a 3-4 outside linebacker over the course of his career.
The Raiders have tallied five sacks thus far, with Maxx Crosby responsible for two of those. But no other edge rusher has contributed to the team’s sack total through three games. Viewed as a Jones successor opposite Crosby this offseason, Wilson has operated as an off-the-bench rusher thus far, playing 40% of Las Vegas’ defensive snaps.
Bears Add CB Joejuan Williams Off Vikings’ Practice Squad
Intra-divisional practice squad poaching has taken off this week. After two such transactions transpired in the NFC South on Tuesday, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport notes the Bears are adding a Vikings P-squad defender.
Cornerback Joejuan Williams will head from Minneapolis to Chicago, with the Bears signing the cornerback off the Vikings’ taxi squad Wednesday morning. This will help a Bears team depleted at corner. The Bears have since announced the move.
Chicago is down Kyler Gordon, who headed to IR with a broken hand, and saw fellow starters Jaylon Johnson and Tyrique Stevenson leave the team’s Week 3 matchup. Stevenson entered concussion protocol during the Chiefs’ runaway win, while Johnson left the game due to a hamstring injury.
Williams appears likely to see his first game action since 2021. The former Patriots second-rounder signed with the Vikings in April but could not make their 53-man roster. Minnesota did extend a P-squad invite shortly after waiving Williams, who was pushing for a roster spot during training camp. A desperate Bears team will take a look.
The Falcons added Storm Norton off the Saints’ P-squad, and the Saints signed quarterback Jake Luton off the Panthers’ 16-man unit. Like Norton and Luton, Williams must remain on his new team’s active roster for at least three weeks.
A 6-foot-3 cover man out of Vanderbilt, Williams went to the Patriots at No. 45 overall in 2019. Joining the then-defending Super Bowl champions, Williams could not carve out a notable role during his time in New England. He played a career-high 254 defensive snaps for the 2021 Pats but has just one start on his resume. Williams, 25, spent the 2022 season on IR due to a summer shoulder injury.
La’el Collins Passes Physical; Several Teams Monitoring Free Agent T
SEPTEMBER 27: The veteran starter is likely to have another opportunity in the near future. Around 12 teams have reached out to the high-profile free agent, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com notes, adding that free agency visits should be expected to follow. Collins collected $2.1MM in Bengals injury guarantees in 2023; it will be interesting to see which teams summon him for meetings.
SEPTEMBER 25: La’el Collins has gone from two-time Cowboys extension recipient to Bengals right tackle starter to free agency, becoming unattached after Cincinnati released him from its reserve/PUP list two weeks ago. But it should be expected the seasoned starter finds a new home soon.
ACL and MCL tears ended Collins’ 2022 season on Christmas Eve, and although he was not expected to begin the season on the Bengals’ active roster, the AFC North club made the surprising decision to axe him from the PUP list. While Collins’ readiness level was not known when the Bengals cut him, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter reports he has since passed a physical.
Monday marks almost exactly nine months since Collins suffered his ligament tears, which would put him on a smooth track back to action. It would seemingly take the eight-year veteran more time to move back into game form, but Monday’s development should be of interest to teams in need to tackle help. Considering the injuries that pile up at this position annually, Collins could be an interesting piece to help a team in the near future or as a second-half hired gun.
The Bengals gave Collins a three-year, $21MM deal shortly after the Cowboys released him with in March 2022. Collins, 30, brought great value to Dallas, arriving as a first-round-level talent who fell out of the draft due to off-field matters. After a seven-year run as a Cowboys starter, Collins started all 15 games he played as a Bengal. The Bengals lost Collins, fellow 2022 signee Alex Cappa and veteran tackle Jonah Williams to injuries down the stretch, making a key impact on their push to defend their AFC title. This offseason, Cincy changed its tackle plans by signing Orlando Brown Jr. and moving Williams to the right side. That left Collins without a starting job, and the team was not particularly pleased with his pre-injury work.
Collins only has experience at right tackle, moving there from guard in 2017. But he would stand to be an upgrade for some teams at that post. The Patriots are playing without Riley Reiff, Collins’ Cincinnati RT predecessor, while the Jets chose to move Mekhi Becton back to left tackle (and Alijah Vera-Tucker to his emergency RT spot) after Duane Brown‘s injury. (The Patriots are believed to have Collins on their radar.) The Browns lost starter Jack Conklin for the season, while the Seahawks and Texans have their respective starters (Abraham Lucas, Tytus Howard) on IR. The Lions are down multiple tackles, with a potential season-ending Matt Nelson injury coming during Taylor Decker‘s second straight missed game.
Should Collins be ready to return to game action soon, he would represent an experienced option as contenders assemble their stretch-run rosters. While the LSU alum may be on the backend of his career, he has started 86 career games and worked as the primary right tackle for three playoff teams.
Bears Eyeing Major Staff Changes?
While the Matt Nagy–Ryan Pace regime showed early issues, the Bears did not produce a losing season until the fourth and final year of that partnership. Although circumstances are a bit different for Matt Eberflus and Ryan Poles, the team is in a worse spot than it was during the previous duo’s run.
The Bears have now lost 13 straight games, and their defense has cratered under Eberflus, a defensive-oriented head coach. Alan Williams, the defensive coordinator who followed Eberflus from Indianapolis, lasted only 18 games with the team. Inappropriate conduct on Williams’ part is believed to have occurred, and the Bears’ defense has taken significant steps back since Eberflus arrived. While the Bears have gutted the nucleus that helped Mitch Trubisky pilot the team to two playoff berths, it finished last in points allowed in 2022 and ranks 31st this season.
Following Williams’ exit and Justin Fields making comments about the coaching staff’s role in his struggles — a point the third-year QB attempted to walk back — Poles addressed the state of the team. The Bears are early in the Poles-run rebuild, but a new president — ex-Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren — is in place. A growing suspicion exists in league circles Warren is already considering rebooting the operation, Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post notes.
Fields ranks last in QBR, sitting nearly six points behind Zach Wilson, through three games. The Poles regime did not draft Fields, who threatened to break Lamar Jackson‘s single-season QB rushing record last season, but has a clear stake in his future. The Bears traded away the No. 1 overall pick, showing a belief in Fields over an investment in the likes of Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud. Chicago should be well-positioned for the 2024 draft, holding their own pick and Carolina’s. Another QB investment may be necessary, but it will be worth wondering if this regime will be in place to make the picks by then.
One GM told La Canfora that Warren has seen enough to know change needs to take place. The Bears do not fire coaches in-season, and it would represent a quick trigger to dump Poles so early in his rebuild effort. But two-and-done coaches are standard practice in the NFL. Quick GM hooks are less common, though these moves have taken place in the recent past. The Jets dropped John Idzik after his second season, while the Texans canned Brian Gaine midway through his second offseason.
Warren arrived in January, succeeding longtime team president Ted Phillips. The latter was in his final months on the job when Poles and Eberflus were hired, and La Canfora notes Bill Polian played a lead role in the hires. The Bears have kept their organizational workflow in place from the Phillips era, with Warren stationed as the buffer between ownership and the football ops department. Warren would have the power to fire the second-year GM-HC duo and lead the next search. Not directly in charge of the Bears’ football ops, Warren is believed to have a role on that side.
The Bears have not had a two-and-done HC since Marc Trestman, who was fired after the 2014 season. Trestman also stands as the Bears’ only two-and-done period since the 1970 merger. Trestman went 13-19. Poles should be considered on safer ground, but Eberflus — now in place as the Bears’ defensive play-caller — should certainly be viewed as a hot-seat occupant given recent developments.
Latest On Raiders, Chandler Jones
The Raiders-Chandler Jones saga continues to unfold, and the veteran edge rusher said he has attempted to reach out to the team about why he is not presently permitted to play. Residing on the reserve/non-football illness list, Jones said he has tried to contact GM Dave Ziegler to no avail.
This turbulent month for the Raiders and their 2022 free agency acquisition has now involved Jones indicating he has been hospitalized. The 33-year-old defender wrote Monday night that the Las Vegas Fire Department officials transported him to the hospital “against my will,” according to ESPN.com’s Paul Gutierrez.
Jones social media posts, which have catalyzed his on-field hiatus, indicated he was transferred from the hospital to Seven Hills Behavioral Health Hospital last week. He said between five and seven Las Vegas Fire Department officials came to his home to inform him he was being placed on a “court hold” by the Las Vegas Police Department.
The former Patriots and Cardinals standout also wrote that the staff at the behavioral hospital “tried to force me to take meds & injections.” Jones also indicated the reasoning behind his alleged hospitalization came about because of his online activity.
“I haven’t done anything wrong,” Jones said, via Gutierrez. “The police said people were concerned about me because of my posts online. I’m still confused on what I did wrong. I’m stuck here. I’m very sane. I’m to strong of a person to be mentally broken [sic].”
The Raiders placed Jones on the reserve/NFI list last week, moving him off the 53-man roster. While the team is open to activating Jones if the situation improves, it does not seem likely that will transpire in the near future. Jones also said he called Ziegler at least six times after being hospitalized, adding that he “wondered if [Ziegler] had me put in here, but he never answered.” The Raiders have classified this a private matter.
An incident involving Jones being locked out of the Raiders’ facility in early September, leading to him conducting a workout at a public gym, marked the beginning of his tirade against the team and its top staffers. Jones said he no longer wanted to play for the Raiders as long as Ziegler and Josh McDaniels were in charge. The $17MM-per-year pass rusher also said the Raiders sent a crisis team to his house not long after the initial round of posts. Recently, Jones added to this bizarre dust-up by saying owner Mark Davis is “holding a huge secret.” Raider players and others around the league have expressed concern for Jones’ health. The 11-year veteran has not practiced with the Raiders since the locked-door incident.
Jones signed a three-year, $51MM deal with the Raiders in March 2022. The team is not obligated to pay the former All-Pro while he is on the reserve/NFI list, but an offseason restructure converted most of his salary into a signing bonus. Jones is only tied to a $1.17MM base salary this season.
Falcons Place LB Troy Andersen On IR
The Falcons will be without one of their starting linebackers for a while. Troy Andersen is headed to IR, the team announced. The 2022 second-round pick has run into multiple health issues to start his second season.
After missing Week 2 with a concussion, Andersen returned to action against the Lions. But he has encountered shoulder and pectoral injuries. Indicating Andersen’s injury “didn’t look good,” Arthur Smith said a potential season-ending IR stay could be on tap. An MRI confirmed a severe injury, per the team website. It is not known if Andersen suffered a torn pec, an injury that would sideline him for the rest of the season.
Although teams have eight IR activations to use in-season, Andersen may not factor into this roster math. Andersen went down during the fourth quarter of the Falcons’ Week 3 loss to the Lions. Nate Landman, a 2022 UDFA, stepped in for Andersen.
Arriving as last year’s No. 58 overall pick, the Montana State alum joined a Falcons team with a crowded linebacker group last year. Despite Foye Oluokun‘s defection to Jacksonville, Atlanta still rostered a host of veterans — Deion Jones, Rashaan Evans and Nick Kwiatkoski — along with Mykal Walker. The Falcons overhauled their linebacking corps upon hiring Ryan Nielsen as defensive coordinator. Jones, Evans, Kwiatkoski and Walker are all elsewhere, with ex-Saint Kaden Elliss added to anchor the team’s linebacking corps.
Playing behind the likes of Walker and Evans last season, Andersen did make five starts as a rookie. The Division I-FCS product notched 69 tackles (three for loss) last season, forcing a fumble. He started alongside Elliss to open this season. A Colorado alum, Landman played in 10 games as a rookie. After logging just 22 defensive snaps throughout his first season, Landman has already been on the field for 57 this year. He started in place of Andersen in Week 2 and looks to continue in that capacity moving forward. Sixth-year veteran Tae Davis sits as the other Falcons backup inside ‘backer. The Falcons have Andre Smith and Milo Eifler as their practice squad ILBs.
Falcons Sign T Storm Norton Off Saints’ Practice Squad
Storm Norton spent the past six months with the Saints, signing with the team in March and ending up on its practice squad. But an intra-NFC South transaction will send him to New Orleans’ top rival.
The Falcons are signing Norton off the Saints’ P-squad, according to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo. Atlanta will be the veteran tackle’s sixth NFL destination. He is best known for a Chargers tenure that spanned from 2020-22.
Because they are poaching Norton off another team’s practice squad, the Falcons must keep the seventh-year blocker on their active roster for at least three weeks. Norton spent the past three seasons on the Chargers’ 53-man roster, working as a starter for most of the 2021 campaign. Norton, 28, started 15 games for the Bolts that year, beating out Trey Pipkins for the team’s right tackle job. Pipkins, however, won the following year’s competition to lead Norton to a backup role. The Chargers let Norton walk in free agency this offseason, re-signing Pipkins on a three-year, $21.75MM deal.
Norton, a 2017 UDFA, will join a Falcons team housing entrenched starters at tackle — in Jake Matthews and Kaleb McGary — and one that rosters Isaiah Prince as its swingman. Prince, however, was inactive for the Falcons’ Week 3 game against the Lions.
A Toledo alum, Norton has journeyed to Detroit, Arizona, Minnesota, Los Angeles and New Orleans over the first seven years of his career. He only played in one game over his first three seasons — a 2018 cameo with the Vikings — but worked his way up the ladder in L.A. Norton will now have a chance to make an impression as a Falcons backup.
Lions Targeting Jared Goff Extension?
The Rams making Jared Goff the NFL’s second-highest-paid player in September 2019 ended up benefiting the Lions, who capitalized on the former No. 1 overall pick’s depressed value barely 16 months later. Agreeing to take on Goff’s $33.5MM-per-year contract led to the Lions picking up an extra first-round pick in the January 2021 Matthew Stafford trade.
Detroit has kept Goff on that 2019 extension; the former Super Bowl starter is the only QB still attached to a deal agreed to during the 2010s. Extension rumors have circulated this year. Goff’s camp was believed to be targeting a new deal, and the Lions were reported to be engaging in dialogue on an updated contract. While this would be an interesting deal to complete, one GM told the Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora the Lions want to extend Goff, whose contract has fallen to 16th at the position.
Completing a Goff extension might be trickier for the Lions than it was for the Rams. In 2019, the Super Bowl LIII starter was viewed as an ascending talent going into his age-25 season. He had come off two straight quality seasons under Sean McVay, and while the Cal product was not viewed as necessarily a top-tier starter, he was seen as a rising player coming into his prime. Goff did not live up to that deal in Los Angeles and saw a midcareer regression lead him to Detroit, where he struggled in 2021. Early in his age-29 season, however, Goff is in a much better place — as the unquestioned starter for a team that has constructed an atypical rebuild around him.
Not taking the route most rebuilding teams have, the Lions have never enjoyed a modern rookie-QB contract. Stafford’s was signed during the 2006 CBA’s duration; that agreement doubled as the last before the slot system changed NFL roster building. Stafford signed a six-year, $72MM deal upon being chosen No. 1 overall in 2009. By comparison, Bryce Young is only attached to a four-year, $37.9MM accord.
The Lions still managed to build up their roster around Goff, thanks to the picks the Rams provided and the QB market igniting during the early 2020s. They have assembled a quality offensive line and found a promising play-caller in Ben Johnson, who moved off the HC carousel this offseason. Goff on a new contract would change the equation, though an extension would lower his cap number from $31.9MM 2024 place.
Although Goff has performed well on the heels of his bounce-back 2022 — a season that featured the eighth-year passer rank fifth in QBR (a career-high placement) — the Lions may still want to see more from him. Of course, the better Goff plays this year, the more he will be able to command on his next deal. Through three games, Detroit’s starter ranks fourth in QBR. Goff’s contract runs through the 2024 season, and the salary cap is expected to make another big jump next year. With the $50MM-per-year club being firmly established this offseason, the Lions may have a difficult negotiation coming.
Multiple execs told La Canfora they would shy away from authorizing a big-ticket Goff extension in line with the position’s current upper echelon, while another pegged Detroit’s QB as being worth at least a $45MM-per-year contract. While that would represent a sizable raise for Goff, the resurgent quarterback’s camp could also argue the cap growth and booming QB market would justify a payday north of $50MM AAV.
Goff, Stafford and a 2000 Charlie Batch one-off are the only Lions QBs to complete a winning season over the past 25 years. A Detroit NFC North title, or even a wild-card berth two years after a 3-13-1 season, would only boost Goff’s value, and he will likely have this season to convince Lions brass he is worth a megadeal. It is unknown if the sides will get serious about a negotiation during the season, but of the 15 QB contracts that have since topped Goff’s, none of them were signed in-season.