RB Zac Stacy Retires From NFL
Running back Zac Stacy is done with football. On Thursday afternoon, Stacy announced his retirement via Instagram: 
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“[I] would like to take this time to show appreciation to all those who have supported [me] and were involved throughout my career. The game of football was more than a game to me. It was a life changer…I am forever blessed and grateful for my many former coaches and teammates throughout the years, the resources and relationships that I’ve built playing this game…and the numerous opportunities that I received on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays (and the occasional Monday night) to do what I love to do, and that’s to play the game of football.”
Stacy entered the league as a fifth-round pick of the Rams in 2013. As a rookie, he showed great promise as he gained 973 yards on the ground. In his follow-up campaign, he amassed just 293 yards rushing. After two years with the Rams, he landed with the Jets and saw his career 3.9 yards-per-carry average plummet to 2.9 yards per attempt. In July of 2016, he was cut by the Jets and we didn’t hear much about him after that. Now, he’s moving on to the next chapter.
Dolphins Change Minds, Won’t Cut Branden Albert
The Dolphins are not moving on from Branden Albert after all. Hours after deciding to cut the left tackle and informing him of their plans to do so, Miami has decided to hang on to him – for now. Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald hears that after word of Albert’s release broke, the Dolphins heard from at least one team that had interest in working out a trade. Now, the Dolphins decided that they are going to investigate any trade possibilities out there before letting him go for nothing.
Albert was scheduled to carry a $10.6MM cap hit this season and releasing him would have saved $7.2MM. The team could also increase its immediate savings to $8.9MM by designating him a post June 1 cut. Before going down that path, however, the Dolphins first want to see if they can get some draft picks in return.
Albert, a exceptionally talented tackle, has struggled to stay healthy in Miami. In 2016, he made 12 starts and had a career-worst 42.2 grade from Pro Football Focus. The Dolphins drafted Laremy Tunsil last year with the idea that he would eventually play left tackle and, apparently, the future is now. He doesn’t have a place in Miami any longer, but other teams still want him despite his injury history and age.
The Dolphins currently have upwards of $40MM in cap room. If they trade or release Albert, they should have something closer to $50MM to work with.
Browns Re-Sign LS Charley Hughlett
The Browns have locked up long snapper Charley Hughlett for a long, long time. Hughlett has inked a brand new six-year deal with Cleveland, according to agent Brett Tessler (on Twitter). The deal will make him the highest-paid long snapper in the league, the agent adds. 
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“I am super excited,” said Hughlett in a press release from the Browns. “I couldn’t be happier to be here. My wife and I are happy to call Cleveland our home. I can’t wait to start getting things turned around.”
Hughlett, 27 in May, bounced around the league a bit before making his NFL debut with the Browns in 2015. Since then, Hughlett has appeared in every regular season game for Cleveland. This year, Hughlett was a pending exclusive rights free agent, but the Browns didn’t want to sign him to the standard one-year addition.
John Denney of the Dolphins was the league’s highest-paid long snapper in the league last year with a $1.215MM cap number. Exact terms of Hughlett’s deal are not yet known.
Agent Ben Dogra Reinstated By NFLPA
Agent Ben Dogra is back. After having his license revoked by the NFL Players’ Association last year, he has been reinstated, a source tells Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Dogra was originally suspended for three years but later had his ban reduced to six months. He also paid a $25K fine to the Gene Upshaw Players Assistance Trust for his undisclosed violation, opening the door to his return today.
Dogra represents Adrian Peterson and once had one of the most impressive stable of clients in the NFL. He was formerly the co-CEO of Relatively Football before the company reorganized and relaunched as Independent Sports and Entertainment in June. It’s not immediately clear where Dogra is headquartered at the moment, nor do we know which players still consider Dogra to be their agent. Just prior to the sanctions, Peterson, Gerald McCoy, Robert Griffin III, DeMeco Ryans, Mario Williams, and Sebastian Vollmer were among the players under Dogra’s management.
Patriots, Tom Brady Begin Extension Talks
Tom Brady’s is under contract with the Patriots through the 2019 season, but the team is already getting a head start on extension talks. The five-time Super Bowl winner is in early talks with the Pats about a new deal, Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald tweets. Howe cautions that things are still preliminary and nothing is imminent. 
Both sides are still basking in the afterglow of a thrilling Super Bowl 51 victory, so it will probably take a while before a deal can be finalized. Brady will turn 40 in August and his current deal will take him through his age-42 season, but he has been vocal about wanting to play into his mid-40s. If it were any other player, we would all be dubious of his ability to stay in the game for that long. However, Brady just finished a spectacular season in which he was arguably the No. 1 QB in the entire league. There’s no reason to doubt the future Hall of Famer and the Patriots are willing to commit to him for as long as he’s able to play.
Right now, Brady is scheduled to make $14MM in 2017, $22MM in 2018, and $22MM in 2019. By extending Brady, the Pats might be able to smooth out some of those cap hits. From the QB’s perspective, a lengthy new deal coupled with a trade of young upstart Jimmy Garoppolo would be the ultimate show of confidence.
Dolphins Pondering Trade For Big-Name CB
After cleaning house on Thursday morning, the Dolphins are plotting their next move. The Dolphins see their secondary as a unit in need of help and they’re thinking about swinging a trade for a big-name cornerback, Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (on Twitter) hears. 
Around this time last year, the Dolphins acquired cornerback Byron Maxwell (and Kiko Alonso) via trade from the Eagles. Maxwell, Tony Lippett, Bobby McCain, and Xavien Howard are still in the fold, but Miami still craves a CB upgrade. Maxwell graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 11 cornerback in the NFL last year, but no other Dolphins corner placed in the top 65. It’s not immediately clear who the Dolphins might be targeting or how much they’re willing to give up via trade.
For those of you just tuning in, the Dolphins handed out pink slips to defensive end Mario Williams, left tackle Branden Albert, and defensive tackle Earl Mitchell on Thursday. The Dolphins are expected to have roughly $50MM in cap space by the time free agency gets underway.
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Dolphins To Release Earl Mitchell
We have another notable release in Miami. The Dolphins are cutting defensive tackle Earl Mitchell, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Mitchell was due $4MM this upcoming season. Instead, his contract will leave just $500K in dead money. 
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Mitchell was said to have “internal support” within the Dolphins front office, but his fan club was not large enough to keep him in South Florida. After missing half the season with a calf injury, Mitchell only ended up playing one-quarter of Miami’s defensive snaps. Apparently, the Dolphins feel that they can acquire defensive line depth elsewhere for cheaper.
Mitchell, 30 in September, left the Texans in free agency to sign with the Dolphins prior to the 2014 season. The defensive tackle received a four-year, $19MM deal with $8MM guaranteed, thanks in large part to his work ethic and leadership skills. In his first year as a Dolphin, Mitchell was a highly-valued sub as he notched 33 total tackles and 2.0 sacks. In the last two seasons, however, his production has noticeably dipped.
Tony Romo Expecting To Be Cut By Cowboys
We’ve heard quite a bit of Tony Romo trade speculation in recent months, but the veteran quarterback sees things playing out differently. Romo is expecting to be released and he believes he can be a starting quarterback in the NFL for two or three more seasons, a source tells Ed Werder of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Romo, who turns 37 in April, has not played a full season of football since 2014. His current contract calls for him to earn a $14MM base salary in 2017 and it would be challenging for the Cowboys to convince another team to give up draft picks in addition to paying out that deal. Beyond that, Romo presumably wants to choose his own landing spot rather than leave it to chance. Given his close relationship with owner Jerry Jones, it seems possible that he could secure his release.
One recent report claimed the Bills have “significant” interest in Romo, but the veteran might want to join a team that is closer to contention. The Broncos have been frequently mentioned as a possibility while the nearby Texans are not interested.
Jets To Push Nick Mangold To Take Pay Cut?
The higher-ups in the Jets front office do not want to bring Nick Mangold back at his current salary, a source tells Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. Meanwhile, a second source says that the team has yet to approach the center about taking a pay cut. Typically, those conversations happen during the draft combine. 
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Mangold, 33, is scheduled to count $9.075MM against the salary cap in the final year of his deal but the team could theoretically clear all of that by cutting him. It remains to be seen how much of a pay slash the former Pro Bowler is willing to take. He’s scheduled to make $6.075MM, including a $2.4MM bonus due at training camp.
Mangold has been with the Jets since he was selected in the first round of the 2006 draft. From 2006 through 2015, he missed only four regular season games. This past season, a knee injury and nagging ankle issue limited him to only eight games. Despite the frustrations of 2016, Mangold is insistent that he wants to continue playing.
“I love football,” Mangold said in late December. “I miss it dearly. I’m planning on playing. I want to keep playing football, and I want to do it here.”
The feeling is presumably mutual, but Mangold will have to give up some cash in order to stay.