Bucs Eyeing Antoine Winfield Jr. Extension
Tristan Wirfs resides as the Buccaneers’ top extension candidate from the 2020 draft, but the rookie class that played a key role in the team winning a second championship includes another such priority.
A new deal for Antoine Winfield Jr. is on the Bucs’ radar as well, according to ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler. While Wirfs is tied to Tampa Bay through 2024 via the fifth-year option, Winfield is going into a contract year.
[RELATED: Bucs Restructure Winfield’s Rookie Deal]
Winfield, who will turn 25 later this month, is one of the NFL’s best young safeties. Pro Football Focus has graded the second-generation NFL DB as a top-10 safety in each of the past two seasons. As the Bucs’ offense cratered last year, its defense submitted respectable numbers (13th in points allowed, ninth in yards, 13th in DVOA). Winfield represented a big reason for the unit staying afloat, and he is now extension-eligible.
The top of the safety market ballooned toward $20MM per year last summer, with Minkah Fitzpatrick and then Derwin James topping Jamal Adams‘ record-setting AAV. James’ $19MM average leads the way. Winfield may not be a candidate to top James, but he should certainly be in the mix to land an extension near the top tier.
The Falcons just gave Jessie Bates a four-year, $64MM accord; that sits fourth at the position. Granted, that came on the open market, and other safeties did not do nearly as well in free agency this year. But at 25, Winfield should be going into his prime. That should make this a costly payment for a Bucs team that already has a number of pricey deals on defense — from Carlton Davis to Jamel Dean to Vita Vea to Shaquil Barrett. Reporting to training camp months after requesting a trade, Devin White sits in limbo entering his fifth-year option season.
Tampa Bay has managed to lock down its cornerstone defensive backs at manageable rates in recent years. Davis and Dean hit free agency, but neither cornerback secured a deal north of $15MM per year. Despite being more than $50MM over the cap at one point this winter, the Bucs re-signed Dean on a four-year, $52MM deal. Davis agreed to terms on a three-year, $44.5MM accord in March 2022.
With Tom Brady‘s void money coming off the books after this year and no franchise-QB salary on the Bucs’ books, money should be available for a player like Winfield, whom Fowler adds could be a candidate to be extended before the season starts. That would be a different approach compared to how the Bucs played it with Davis and Dean. But Winfield appears a priority for a team that, despite Brady’s retirement, still has several Super Bowl LV starters under contract.
Cowboys Unlikely To Re-Sign Ezekiel Elliott?
As most teams’ training camps head into their second week, Ezekiel Elliott remains unsigned. The two-time rushing champion has been connected to a few teams, but his main connection is not generating momentum.
The Cowboys saw offseason pickup Ronald Jones incur a two-game suspension Monday, and they are otherwise thin on experience behind Tony Pollard. But Elliott does not look to be in the Cowboys’ current plans, per the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence Hill, who notes a reunion with the longtime starter is not a consideration at this point.
[RELATED: Cowboys Offered Pollard Long-Term Deal]
Mike McCarthy said the team does not want Elliott to take reps from its younger collection of backups. Malik Davis, Rico Dowdle and 5-foot-6 sixth-rounder Deuce Vaughn comprise that contingent. With Jones not exactly a lock to make the team regardless of his suspension, the Cowboys will be closely monitoring the progress of the aforementioned trio.
McCarthy’s comments regarding the backfield, however, came as Jerry Jones once again (via the Dallas Morning News’ Calvin Watkins) left the door open to a Zeke-Cowboys reunion. The prospect of the Cowboys bringing Elliott back at a significantly reduced rate surfaced in March, and the topic came up after the draft in April and again in June.
“I’ve been very consistent,” Jones said. “We’re just kind of see how it plays and we’re certainly haven’t closed the door. I wouldn’t know right now, what adjustments we might make, but just working ahead I don’t want to rule it out.”
Elliott, 28, has visited the Patriots. Prior to meeting with Elliott, Bill Belichick consulted Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones, Ed Werder of ESPN.com tweets. Belichick contacted Jones for a reference of sorts. The Patriots have looked into Elliott, Leonard Fournette and Darrell Henderson but have not made an addition. They have also discussed a meeting with Dalvin Cook, but as of now, the Jets have secured the only summit with the top back available. Cook may be zeroing in on the Jets, though with no deal agreed to, the Pats and Dolphins still have time to up their offers.
While Elliott has undeniably slowed down since his initial NFL breakthrough, he still matched Pollard’s 12 touchdowns last season and has frequently generated praise from Jerry Jones. But the former No. 4 overall pick has logged 2,186 touches — 309 more than any other active back. Elliott did well to fetch that six-year, $90MM extension from the Cowboys in 2019. Playing four years on the deal gave him vital security. Although the Ohio State product may well have a chance to play an eighth season soon, this year’s grim running back developments do not have teams eager to add him.
The Cowboys growing dissatisfied with the Davis-Dowdle-Vaughn group as camp progresses could reopen a door for Elliott, considering how many times the topic of a reunion has come up this since the March separation.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/1/23
Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: DL Nick Thurman
- Waived: LB Arron Mosby
- Waived/failed physical: DL John Penisini
Chicago Bears
- Waived: DT Donovan Jeter
Denver Broncos
- Signed: WR Nick Williams
Detroit Lions
- Waived/injured: TE Shane Zylstra
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: WR Andre Miller, OL Cole Schneider
- Waived: OL Chuck Filiaga, TE Camren McDonald
Houston Texans
- Signed: K Jake Bates
- Placed on IR: FB Troy Hairston
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: RB Toriano Clinton, TE La’Michael Pettway, T Dan Skipper
- Waived: T Jordan Murray, TE Kaden Smith, DT Jamal Woods
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: LB Darius Harris
- Waived: LB Kana’i Mauga, T Justin Murray
New England Patriots
- Claimed (from Bears): WR Thyrick Pitts
- Placed on reserve/retired list: WR Jalen Hurd
New York Giants
- Signed: C Sean Harlow
- Placed on IR: C J.C. Hassenauer
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: RB Greg Bell, RB John Lovett
- Waived: RB Jason Huntley
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: DT Robert Cooper, OL Liam Ryan
- Waived: DL Roderick Perry
Chosen in the third round by the 49ers back in 2019, Hurd never ended up seeing regular-season action. A converted running back who played in front of Alvin Kamara at points while at Tennessee, Hurd transferred to Baylor and became a wide receiver. Two season-ending injuries — a back malady in 2019 and an ACL tear in 2020 — derailed Hurd’s 49ers tenure. The team cut him during the 2021 season. Barely a week after the Patriots signed Hurd, it appears he is throwing in the towel on an injury-plagued career.
Penisini had unretired this offseason, joining the Panthers. The former Lions sixth-rounder played two seasons on his rookie contract but called it quits in June 2022. His unretirement will precede a Panthers exit. The Lions are moving Zylstra off their 90-man roster due to a severe knee injury. If unclaimed, Zylstra would revert to Detroit’s IR list. Zylstra has seen action in 17 games for the Lions over the past two seasons.
Hassenauer will require surgery to repair a triceps injury, and this transaction will shut him down — as far as the Giants are concerned. The only way Hassenauer can play in 2023 would be if the Giants removed him from IR via an injury settlement. Hairston suffered a herniated disk during practice, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson (on Twitter).
49ers Sign DE Taco Charlton
The 49ers of recent years have been known to generate some production from lower-profile defensive end additions, and the team will take a flier on a former first-round pick.
Taco Charlton signed with the 49ers on Tuesday. They are the ex-Cowboys first-rounder’s seventh team since leaving Dallas back in 2019. Charlton, 28, has been with the Dolphins, Chiefs, Steelers, Saints, Bears and Jaguars in the years since his Cowboys rookie deal did not pan out.
Last season, the Michigan alum stopped through Chicago and Jacksonville. The Bears used him as a backup in five games, while the Jags freed up a practice squad spot. Charlton does have 13 career starts, the most recent stretch of note coming in Miami four years ago. Charlton totaled five sacks with the Dolphins, who were not exactly going all out to win during that season.
The six-year veteran joins the 49ers’ Nick Bosa-fronted defensive end contingent. The 49ers have coaxed some decent work from the likes of Charles Omenihu, Samson Ebukam, Kerry Hyder and Arden Key in recent years. D-line coach Kris Kocurek‘s unit lost Omenihu (Chiefs) and Ebukam (Colts) in free agency. The Niners will expect 2022 second-rounder Drake Jackson to make a leap in Year 2, and Hyder re-signed with the team this offseason. The 49ers drafted Robert Beal in the fifth round, and they are also making a low-level bet on former Raiders top-five pick Clelin Ferrell.
With Ferrell, Bosa, Arik Armstead and Javon Kinlaw, the 49ers now have five first-rounders on their D-line. Though, a few of these players have obviously not justified those past investments. Charlton will attempt to assimilate here, with the 49ers’ P-squad a potential option as well. The team waived safety Avery Young to clear a roster spot.
AFC East Notes: Becton, Diggs, Dolphins
His place as one of the NFL’s most injury-prone players notwithstanding, Mekhi Becton made some pointed comments when insisting he was a left tackle in May. This forced Robert Saleh to address said comments. Several weeks after predicting he would return to his former spot and win the job, the fourth-year blocker now said (via the New York Post’s Brian Costello) he would be fine playing right tackle again. Becton, who has missed 33 straight regular-season games, said he underwent the wrong surgery to repair his September 2021 knee injury. He indicated he was not fully healed when he went down again, shortly after being moved to right tackle, during the Jets’ 2022 training camp. Becton, who missed time during this year’s camp with more knee trouble, has returned to the field and is expected to play in a limited role in Thursday’s preseason opener, Saleh said.
Duane Brown, 37, has been viewed as the favorite to win the Jets’ left tackle position. But the 16th-year veteran, who underwent shoulder surgery this offseason, remains on the team’s active/PUP list. Billy Turner had received first-team left tackle reps in front of Becton earlier in camp, though the ex-Packers and Broncos right tackle has also been working on the right side with Max Mitchell.
Here is the latest from the AFC East:
- The Bills have made a concerted effort to put Stefon Diggs questions in their rearview mirror. The Pro Bowl wide receiver said he is not angling for more say in the team’s play-calling. “For me to just want more say in the offense, it’s crazy because I play receiver,” Diggs said recently. “I don’t care what play is called. I can’t get up there and say, ‘Call this.’ It’s a lot of outlandish, obvious things where people [are] throwing out there or people were saying as far as my role.” A report suggested Diggs was unhappy with his role in Buffalo’s offense. Although Diggs did not say what caused Sean McDermott to send him home from a minicamp day, the ninth-year veteran has since said he was never at odds with Josh Allen and said he and the Bills are on good terms. Diggs’ $24MM-per-year contract runs through 2026.
- Although it would seem Mike White had a virtual guarantee to become the Dolphins‘ backup quarterback, he entered camp in a battle with 2022 third-stringer Skylar Thompson for the gig. White signed a two-year, $8MM deal ($4.5MM guaranteed) in March, and the Dolphins were believed to be enamored with the ex-Jet as Tua Tagovailoa insurance. Thompson has extended a promising offseason into training camp, per the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson, who adds last year’s QB3-turned-emergency starter is being given a legitimate opportunity to become the backup. Considering Tagovailoa’s injury history, Miami’s QB2 post stands as one of the league’s most important reserve spots.
- Daron Payne, Jeffery Simmons, Dexter Lawrence and Quinnen Williams have signed long-term deals this offseason, creating a fairly set price range for the Dolphins as they negotiate a Christian Wilkins extension. While the team wants to extend the fifth-year D-tackle and is optimistic on doing so, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler notes no significant momentum has developed in these talks. Wilkins is tied to a $10.75MM fifth-year option salary. The sides have been talking for months.
- Dolphins target Cedrick Wilson Jr. has been connected to trade rumors. Multiple reports indicated the team was willing to part with Wilson, who signed a three-year deal worth $22.1MM in March 2022. Dolphins GM Chris Grier said the team is not shopping Wilson, despite reports to the contrary, and the sixth-year receiver said (via Jackson) he is not seeking a trade. Wilson’s $5MM guarantee for 2023 will complicate a trade; the Dolphins would save $7MM by moving him. Wilson did not live up to his contract last year, totaling 136 receiving yards in 15 games. While Trent Sherfield is no longer in the mix, the Dolphins have added Chosen Anderson and Braxton Berrios this offseason.
Broncos To Sign CB Fabian Moreau
Making Ronald Darby a cap casualty earlier this year, the Broncos had stood pat on the veteran front at cornerback. They are making a mid-training camp addition, however.
Fabian Moreau will join the team on a one-year deal, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Moreau has experience as a boundary and slot corner. He will join a group anchored by Patrick Surtain but one featuring some questions at the other spots.
The Dolphins worked out Moreau recently, but they signed Eli Apple in the wake of Jalen Ramsey‘s knee surgery. The Broncos will take a look at the former Washington, Falcons and Giants corner, who is going into his age-29 season. The former third-round pick has made 45 career starts, including 11 last season for the Giants.
Qualifying as a journeyman at this point, Moreau spent last year with two teams. The Texans signed the UCLA alum but released him before the regular season. Moreau caught on with the Giants but did not debut for the playoff-bound team until Week 2. The Giants lost one of their starting corners (Aaron Robinson) for the season and another (Adoree’ Jackson) for a sizable chunk of it, depleting Don Martindale‘s depth chart. Moreau moved from the practice squad into the lineup, and while his coverage metrics rated slightly better compared to a rough 2021 opposite AJ Terrell in Atlanta, Pro Football Focus still rated him 90th at the position.
Moreau, whom Pro-Football-Reference charged with allowing five touchdown passes (after ceding eight in 2021), saw time in the slot in Washington but was not re-signed following the expiration of his rookie contract. Moreau intercepted six passes from 2018-20 and was credited with 21 passes defensed over the past two seasons.
The 6-foot cover man will be given a chance to earn a spot in a Broncos CB corps that features Damarri Mathis and K’Waun Williams as its expected starters alongside Surtain. The team did, however, trade up for Iowa’s Riley Moss in Round 3. Moreau would represent a veteran option on the outside in the Surtain-fronted group, with Mathis — Darby’s injury replacement last year — going into his second season.
Bears Claim DT Bravvion Roy
Bravvion Roy did not advance to the second spot on the waiver priority list. The Bears submitted a claim for the recently cut Panthers defensive tackle, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets.
Formerly a sixth-round Panthers pick in 2020, Roy will remain tied to his rookie contract. One year remains on that deal. The Bears will take a look at the fourth-year defender, adding him to a D-tackle group that features some new pieces.
Chicago used second- and third-round picks to bolster its interior D-line this year, selecting Gervon Dexter in Round 2 and Zacch Pickens in Round 3. The team also rosters Justin Jones and Andrew Billings. The Bears also signed hybrid defensive lineman DeMarcus Walker this offseason, creating a bit of a crowded position group. While the team still appears in need at defensive end, they have made some moves to bolster their DT posts in 2023.
Roy, 26, has made 15 career starts. Pro Football Focus ranked Roy 86th among 127 qualified interior D-linemen last season; that marks his top ranking. Roy had spent the past six years playing for Matt Rhule. A Baylor commit before Rhule’s move south from Temple, Roy played three seasons under Rhule in Waco and then arrived in Carolina during the well-paid HC’s first year there. The Panthers still used Roy frequently after Rhule’s October 2022 firing, giving him four starts during Steve Wilks‘ time at the helm.
The Bears traded out of the No. 1 draft position, with the Panthers, but their 3-14 record in 2022 will provide them a key perch as non-vested veterans are cut this summer. Chicago will have first dibs on players waived during training camp and on cutdown day later this month.
Teams View Jets As Dalvin Cook Favorite; Dolphins See RB As Luxury?
When the Vikings commenced with their Alexander Mattison backfield promotion, the Dolphins were believed to be the frontrunners for his predecessor. But since Dalvin Cook‘s release, the Jets have been the landing spot other teams have expected.
Cook has said roughly five teams are in the mix, but other clubs have heard the Jets have been the team the veteran running back has wanted to land with all along, Albert Breer of SI.com notes. Considering the Jets also are the only team to have met with Cook, it is safe to call them the frontrunners.
[RELATED: Latest On Patriots’ Cook Interest]
The accomplished back is also not seeking a one-year deal to merely re-establish his value in an effort to hit free agency on time next year. Considering where the RB market is and the crowded free agent class that could form in 2024, Cook is seeking a deal that will give him some 2024 money now. The current UFA wants some guarantees for next year, per Breer, though it is not known how much locked-in 2024 cash it would take for Cook to sign.
The Titans gave DeAndre Hopkins a two-year deal last month, but the contract — one with $10.98MM guaranteed at signing — will allow them to cut bait fairly easily after this season. Cook, who is entering his age-28 season, may need another team to show serious interest to secure favorable terms from the Jets. As of now, the Dolphins are viewing Cook as a luxury pickup, per ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler.
A Miami native, Cook has spoken with the Dolphins. The team has made an offer as well, but the Jets have stepped up in the weeks since that proposal became known. The team is eyeing Cook as high-end Breece Hall insurance, per Breer, and the pay cut Aaron Rodgers took is probably a significant driver here as well. The Jets missed out on Odell Beckham Jr. due to a strong Ravens offer, but they have added a few veteran free agents on offense. Hall is believed to be on track to return from his October 2022 ACL tear in Week 1, though Cook would allow the former second-round pick a smoother onramp back to action. Considering the Jets’ narrow window with Rodgers, it makes sense they want to cover all bases at the skill positions.
Cook would seemingly have a better chance to be a true lead back in Miami, with no Hall-like presence there. But the Dolphins have made several RB commitments this offseason. They re-signed regulars Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson, along with Myles Gaskin, and used a third-round pick on Texas A&M speedster Devon Achane.
“Dalvin is a tremendous athlete and football player and has been a productive player in this league. That’s why everyone is looking at him. People would love to have him,” Dolphins GM Chris Grier said during a Sirius XM interview (via the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson). “Whether it works out with us or anyone, we’re just very happy with the group we have and we’re moving forward with that group.”
Grier also went on to praise the above-referenced Dolphins RB quartet, along with holdover Salvon Ahmed. While Cook has said he would be a perfect fit with the Dolphins and Fowler adds the team would “love” to have him, Miami does not seem as eager to complete this signing compared to the interest coming from New York.
Offseason In Review: New York Giants
The Joe Schoen regime’s first offseason did not feature splash moves, with cap issues limiting the GM last year. After a surprise voyage to the NFC’s divisional round, the Giants became far more active this year in making moves that will shape their long-term future. For the most part, the team’s core players are now locked down. Though, more headlines came the team’s way because of the pillar that exited the offseason without an extension.
Re-signings:
- Daniel Jones, QB: Four years, $160MM ($81MM guaranteed)
- Saquon Barkley, RB: One year, $10.1MM ($10.1MM guaranteed)
- Darius Slayton, WR: Two years, $12MM ($4.9MM guaranteed)
- Jamie Gillan, P: Two years, $4MM ($1MM guaranteed)
- Jihad Ward, OLB: One year, $1.5MM ($500K guaranteed)
- Matt Breida, RB: One year, $1.4MM ($500K guaranteed)
- Casey Kreiter, LS: One year, $1.32MM ($353K guaranteed)
- Oshane Ximines, OLB: One year, $1.18MM ($200K guaranteed)
- Sterling Shepard, WR: One year, $1.32MM
- Jarrad Davis, LB: One year, $1.18MM
- Isaiah Hodgins, WR (RFA tender)
Faced with one of the more fascinating decisions in the franchise tag era, the Giants made no secret of their stance adjustment on Jones. Schoen passed on the Dave Gettleman-era draftee’s $22.4MM fifth-year option in 2022. Picking that up would have brought an easier route for the Giants, but the former No. 6 overall pick was coming off an injury-limited season and had not justified such an investment at that point. With Jones becoming the first quarterback to re-sign with a team that had declined his fifth-year option, he exerted the leverage the March franchise tag deadline gave him. At the end of that journey: a payday that would have been unimaginable a year ago.
By not picking up Jones’ option and letting Barkley play out his, the Giants entered March with both unsigned. They ended up navigating this scenario in the same way the 2020 Titans did, re-signing the quarterback and tagging the running back. But the Ryan Tannehill–Derrick Henry situation did not produce half the headlines the Giants’ Jones-Barkley proceedings did.
In the fall, the team first identified Barkley as an extension candidate, beginning bye-week negotiations and offering an extension worth more than $12MM per year. No Jones negotiations took place at that point, with the new Big Blue regime wanting to see more. After Jones piloted a Giants offense stripped of non-Barkley skill-position talent to the franchise’s first playoff win since Super Bowl XLVI, Schoen and Co. changed course. Jones became the priority and was set to receive an expensive franchise tag ($32.4MM). Barkley’s superior talent notwithstanding, the two-time Pro Bowl running back’s positional value dropped him in the team’s queue. This set up a high-stakes stretch leading up to the March 7 deadline to tag players.
Rumored to be aiming for a deal south of $40MM per year, the Giants saw their quarterback change agents and come in with a $47MM-AAV ask once talks heated up in the winter. After a lack of progress in the days leading up to the deadline, the Giants talked Jones down to $40MM per year. Beating the deadline buzzer on this extension allowed them to tag Barkley, completing step one of a seminal offseason itinerary. While that set off another high-profile negotiation that would play out in the coming months, Jones successfully negotiated the same contract parameters Matthew Stafford and Dak Prescott received and did so coming off a season in which he threw only 15 touchdown passes.
The Eli Manning heir apparent transforming his value to this degree made for one of the most interesting contractual sagas in recent memory. Jones, 26, had shown promise as a rookie under Pat Shurmur. His 24 TD passes — in a 12-start season — still rank fifth for a rookie. But Joe Judge‘s tenure, which largely placed Jason Garrett at the controls on offense, ended up setting Jones back. The Duke product combined for 21 TD passes in 25 starts from 2020-21, and his midseason neck injury in the latter season led to one of the worst stretches in Giants history. Although the team’s 9-7-1 response to that benefited Jones more than anyone, the Giants are making a reasonable bet on a player they were seemingly ready to discard at this time last year.
Factoring in rushing impact, QBR viewed Jones as having made tremendous strides under Brian Daboll. Despite increasing receiver limitations and a basement-level tight end situation, Jones ranked sixth in that metric. His 708 rushing yards boosted a team in need of viable non-Barkley help moving the chains, and it will be interesting to see how Jones performs in Daboll’s offense with an improved pass-catching corps.
This contract also gives the Giants a reasonable out after two years. They would be on the hook for barely $9MM in dead money if they designated Jones a post-June 1 cut in 2025. And the subsequent deals for Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson and Justin Herbert did bump the Jones contract down to 11th at the position. Still, Jones is a bit on this deal is a different than having him on rookie money. While it would have been interesting to see if another team would have been willing to give him $40MM per year on the open market, the Giants did not wish to chance that.
Barkley’s tag became one of many events in a crushing offseason for the running back position. The throughline from Mike Shanahan‘s brigade of post-Terrell Davis 1,000-yard backs to the gridlock atop the market following Christian McCaffrey‘s 2020 agreement has led to an overdue spotlight shining on this position’s place in the modern game. At the end of 2023’s carnage, the RB position is at maybe its most unstable point in history.
The Giants not coming to an agreement with Barkley certainly puts this relationship at risk of falling apart after 2023. But the team will have a chance to use the most talented back in its near-100-year history for at least one more season. The Giants will have a chance to tag Barkley again, at barely $12MM, in 2024. Will the 26-year-old RB remain in the picture by that point?
After shaking off a three-year stretch of injuries, Barkley provided great value on a $7.22MM fifth-year option salary by powering the Giants to the playoffs. While the Giants have not been able to utilize Barkley’s pass-game talents on the level his rookie year brought, he gained a career-high 1,312 rushing yards and was by far the most talented Giants skill player. Barkley stayed healthy throughout the season, but after the fall talks did not come close to producing a deal, the Giants ended up pulling their second offer — worth roughly $13MM per year — after tagging him. Four months later, Barkley will play the season for the $10.1MM tag salary (feat. a small incentive package with lofty benchmarks).
Barkley blasted the Giants for leaks that made him look greedy, when the fall and winter offers included low guarantees. Once the team finally moved up to the $22MM guarantee level that represented the cost of two franchise tags, the backfield staple was annoyed that increase came with an AAV decrease south of $12MM. Despite the parties being close to a deal, the Giants making the late move to reduce the AAV led to Barkley passing. Barkley’s No. 2 overall draft slot and fifth-year option money moved his career earnings past $38MM, which would have given him interesting leverage to use a Le’Veon Bell-like absence as evidence — on a Giants team still bereft of dependable skill players elsewhere — of RB value while preserving his body for what could be a last-chance free agency run in 2024. Barkley’s bluff on this front did not translate to even a training camp holdout, illustrating the power the tag gave the Giants.
With the Giants free to use Barkley as they please, this tag season could tank his stock — through either an injury or a third 350-plus-touch year — and leave him in a tough spot on what looks like another crowded free agent market. That is, if the Giants let Barkley reach free agency in 2024. With Miles Sanders receiving $13MM guaranteed from the Panthers, Barkley will bet on himself this year in hopes a reasonable guarantee figure will await him on the market in 2024.
Shepard is the Giants’ longest-tenured player, but his injury history and having re-signed for no guaranteed money makes the Slayton transaction more pertinent for the 2023 Giants. Although Jones and Barkley zoomed into this regime’s good graces after down 2021 offerings, Slayton’s turnaround with the organization may have been more surprising.
The Giants buried Slayton on their depth chart going into his contract year and then slashed his pay, stripping away the proven performance escalator money he earned, before the season. But the slew of issues to affect the team’s receiver cadre — Shepard and Wan’Dale Robinson‘s ACL tears, Kadarius Toney‘s repeat injuries and then a give-up trade, and Kenny Golladay cementing himself as a historic free agency bust — led to Slayton climbing back into a starting role and leading the team in receiving (724 yards). The Giants are deeper at wide receiver this year, but with Robinson not a lock to begin the season on time, Slayton (three 700-yard years) could still find himself opening the season as Jones’ top wideout.
Trades:
- Sent third-round pick (No. 100) to Raiders in exchange for TE Darren Waller
In betting Jones will grow with better pass catchers, the Giants are wagering Waller will shake off the injury trouble that plagued him in Las Vegas. Waller, who will turn 31 in September, missed 14 games over the past two years. The Pro Bowl tight end’s injuries eventually caused the Raiders to cut bait. For a Giants team that has not employed a difference-making tight end in maybe 16 years (Jeremy Shockey?), this is a bet worth making. The pick obtained for Toney is a reasonable price to pay for a dynamic player like Waller.
Unlike Shockey, Waller has delivered a 1,000-yard season. In fact, the ex-Ravens wide receiver is one of just eight tight ends with two 1,100-yard years. Waller saved the Raiders when their Antonio Brown trade preceded a spectacular combustion, going from Jon Gruden-era flier to cornerstone piece in Derek Carr‘s final stretch with the franchise. In his most recent healthy season, Waller ripped off 107-catch, 1,196-yard, nine-TD performance.
Of course, that came three years ago. Since, Waller has dealt with ankle, IT band and hamstring problems. Waller missing eight games due to a hamstring issue — weeks after the Raiders made him the NFL’s highest-paid tight end, at $17MM per year — last year frustrated some in the organization. But he has a clear opportunity in New York. The Raiders had transitioned to a Davante Adams-centered aerial attack. While the Giants took a quantity-based approach at receiver, no No. 1-type wideout — at least, no known commodity — exists on this depth chart. Waller will enter the year as the most likely passing-game centerpiece.
Waller’s 2022 extension did not feature lofty guarantees, which gave the Raiders an easy out. The Giants will only be tagged with $2.5MM in dead money if they designate Waller a post-June 1 cut in 2024. This is a relatively low-risk proposition for Big Blue. Waller did show flashes after coming back from his hamstring issue in December; when healthy, he presents the capability to give the Giants a weapon that would accelerate Jones’ development.
Extensions and restructures:
- Signed LT Andrew Thomas to five-year, $117.5MM extension ($67MM guaranteed)
- Gave DT Dexter Lawrence four-year, $90MM deal ($46.5MM guaranteed)
- Restructured TE Darren Waller‘s deal, creating $7.87MM in cap space
In an offseason that has placed Barkley in a late-’90s George Costanza-like position, when the Susan Ross Foundation continued to unveil other financial plans regarding her estate, Thomas and Lawrence have joined Jones in receiving windfalls. How the Giants proceeded this year doubles as a decent encapsulation for positional value in the NFL. Beyond the reality of the Giants taking care of higher-value players and letting their running back stay on the tag, two more Gettleman-years breakthrough players are under contract for at least five more seasons. Thomas’ deal, in particular, could age very well for the team.
Bengals Expect Joe Burrow To Miss Several Weeks
JULY 29: While Taylor still refused to budge on the phrasing of “several weeks” in an interview today with Pelissero, the vibe around camp seems a bit less cautious. “Several weeks” could indicate that Burrow’s recovery could carry into the regular season, causing him to miss a few games, but Pelissero’s colleague Ian Rapoport reports that, in Cincinnati, “there doesn’t appear to be concern” about the star quarterback being ready for Week 1.
JULY 28: The Bengals will not have their superstar quarterback at practice for a while. They are expecting to be without Joe Burrow for several weeks, Zac Taylor said Friday.
Burrow suffered a calf strain during practice Thursday. After reports of the strain circulated, Taylor confirmed this is the injury. The Bengals are planning to add another quarterback, Taylor said (via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero).
Trevor Siemian and Jake Browning are the healthy Cincinnati passers presently. Set to each see first-team time, the two will enjoy more important work soon. Letting previous Burrow backup Brandon Allen walk (to the 49ers) in free agency, the Bengals signed Siemian soon after that transaction. When asked about the possibility Burrow’s absence will stretch into the regular season, the fifth-year Bengals HC did not comment.
Burrow has battled back from bigger injuries in his career, having made it back from a November 2020 ACL tear in time for the 2021 season opener. He also missed camp time due to appendicitis last year.
Wearing a sleeve on his injured leg at Thursday’s practice, Burrow went down on a noncontact play and was eventually carted off the practice field. The Bengals did not consider holding Burrow out of practice yesterday, Taylor said. While it represents good news Burrow’s injury did not affect his Achilles’ tendon, it is obviously not ideal for a Bengals team whose championship hopes hinge on their QB’s availability. Opening with a road game against the Browns, the Bengals do not begin their season for six weeks.
Camp absences have not led to Burrow missing time in the regular season. The former No. 1 overall pick has not missed a start due to injury since returning from the ACL tear. The Bengals held Burrow out of their Week 18 game in 2021. Other than that, the 2019 Heisman winner has been on the field leading the Bengals’ ascent in this span.
An experience disparity exists between the Bengals’ two backups, with Browning — a 2019 Vikings UDFA — having yet to play a regular-season game. Since being given the keys to start Denver’s Super Bowl title defense in 2016, Siemian has made 30 starts. Browning, 27, may have an uphill battle for QB2 duties, despite having been with the team since September 2021. Siemian, 31, has been with five teams — the Vikings, Jets, Titans, Saints and Bears — since his Broncos tenure ended.
This calf issue should not affect the Bengals’ timeline for Burrow’s extension; the fourth-year passer expressed patience when asked about his negotiations this week. With Justin Herbert agreeing to a $52.5MM-per-year deal with the Chargers on Tuesday night, Burrow will be expected to finish the offseason as the NFL’s highest-paid player. It will just be a matter of how much the Cincy QB moves the bar from the Herbert point. This injury figures to keep Burrow off the field until he signs that long-rumored extension.