Steelers’ Trai Turner To Earn $3MM
On Thursday, the Steelers parted ways with David DeCastro and moved quickly to find his successor. Now, we have the terms of Trai Turner‘s deal – the veteran guard will earn just $3MM on his one-year deal (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 
That’s a solid value considering that Turner is a five-time Pro Bowler. While the Chargers cut bait with Turner after just one year, he offers the toughness, experience, and upside they lost by cutting DeCastro.
Turner found a tepid market for his services since knee and groin problems limited him to just nine games in 2020. Pro Football Focus slotted Turner as the league’s second-worst guard in 2020, but he could easily return to his old form if he’s healthy.
The 28-year-old comes to Pittsburgh with 89 career starts, making him the most senior member of the offensive line. In the hours betwee DeCastro’s release and Turner’s agreement, left tackle Chukwuma Okorafor held that mantle with just 19 career starts.
Latest On Packers’ Aaron Rodgers
As it stands, Aaron Rodgers has two choices — collect his full paycheck for 2021, or continue his holdout into the season and forfeit millions of dollars. However, there is an option C for the Packers’ quarterback. Per the terms of this year’s agreement between the NFL and the NFLPA, Rodgers could opt out, skip the season, and prevent the Packers from taking $18.3MM out of his pocket (via PFT). 
[POLL: Will The Packers Trade Aaron Rodgers To The Broncos?]
Players can opt out for any reason, regardless of whether they’ve been deemed as a high risk for COVID-19 complications. The only hitch is that the decision has to be made by Friday, July 2. After that point, it’s irrevocable.
It’s be a bold and unprecedented move on Rodgers’ part. It would also prevent him from attempting an encore of his 2020 MVP season. The Packers continue to say that they will not trade Rodgers under any circumstances, but plenty of people seem to think that they’ll bend. In a recent poll, 25% of PFR readers said that Rodgers will wind up as the Broncos’ Week 1 starter.
“We obviously still feel the same way,” head coach Matt LaFleur said earlier this year. “We want him back in the worst way. I know he knows that. And we’ll continue to work at it each and every day.”
Former Steelers G David DeCastro To Retire?
Former Steelers guard David DeCastro is now free to sign with any team in the NFL. However, the multiple-time Pro Bowler says that he might call it a career instead. 
“Gotta see how the surgery goes,” DeCastro said (via Joe Starkey of the Post Gazette). “But I’d have no problem calling it a day and moving on with my life.”
DeCastro is set for a third surgery on his ankle to fix a recurring issue with bone spurs. The Steelers released him earlier this week with a non-football injury designation, a sign that they’re not so sure about his ability to bounce back. By releasing him, they saved ~$8MM, though it remains to be seen how they’ll replace him on the interior.
A starter since his 2012 rookie season, DeCastro has made the past six Pro Bowls and has secured two first-team All-Pro nods. Now, on the verge of what would be his his age-31 season, he’s giving serious thought to life after football.
The Steelers and the former first-round pick agreed to a five-year, $50MM extension back in September 2016. That deal worked out well for Pittsburgh — DeCastro carved out holes for Le’Veon Bell during his All-Pro campaigns, teaming with Maurkice Pouncey and Ramon Foster to form one of the league’s best interior lines.
Panthers Sign Brady Christensen
The Panthers have signed third-round offensive lineman Brady Christensen, per a club announcement. As the No. 70 overall pick, the BYU product will make $5.16MM on his four-year deal, including a signing bonus of $1.12MM. 
Scouts Inc. assigned a seventh-round grade to Christensen, whose stature and lack of lateral quickness might point him to the interior, rather than the outside. However, the Panthers were (and are) extremely bullish on him during the draft. Initially, the Panthers planned to take Christensen with the No. 60 overall pick. Then, they got word of the Saints’ interest in wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr. Fortunately for them, Christensen was still there at No. 70, even after they took Marshall 60th.
Christensen, 25 in September, spent three seasons with the Cougars, blocking for No. 2 overall pick Zach Wilson. It remains to be seen how the Panthers will use him this year, but it sounds like Cam Erving, Greg Little, and Dennis Daley will vie for the left tackle job. That may leave Christensen to fight for time at right tackle or one of the two guard spots.
With Christensen in the fold, third-round tight end Tommy Tremble stands as the Panthers’ last straggler.
Seahawks’ Quandre Diggs Wants New Deal
Jamal Adams isn’t the only Seahawks player seeking a lucrative extension. Free safety Quandre Diggs also wants a fresh contract, as Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic writes. 
[RELATED: Latest On Seahawks, Adams]
Diggs reported to minicamp and participated in all of the assigned drills, but he wants a new pact to reflect his performance. As it stands, he’s set to enter the final year of the three-year, $18.6MM deal he originally signed with Detroit. Diggs is fresh off of his first ever Pro Bowl selection — last year, he notched five interceptions and ten passes defensed, solidifying himself as one of the stronger safeties in the NFL. Meanwhile, his salary ranks 19th at the position.
The Seahawks don’t have much of a contingency plan if Diggs leaves, and they haven’t been able to draft well for the safety position outside of Earl Thomas in 2010. The Seahawks certainly want to keep Diggs, but a new deal for the 28-year-old would probably cost north of $12MM. If they don’t lock Diggs up now, they’ll run the risk of a much higher price tag. The Seahawks should also be motivated to get a deal done before other safeties sign their next deals. Marcus Maye (Jets) and Marcus Williams (Saints) are both gunning for extensions to replace their one-year, $10.6MM tag for 2021.
Still, the Seahawks will have to rank and balance their priorities. In addition to Adams and Diggs, they could also explore an extension for veteran lineman Duane Brown.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Kawann Short
He was one of the NFL’s premier defensive tackles across multiple seasons. Now, he stands as one of the very best free agents left on the board. We haven’t heard much about Kawann Short since he was released in February, but the former Panthers star shouldn’t have too much trouble finding his next employer.
Short said “a few teams” reached out over the winter, mostly with interest in one-year deals due to his recent shoulder injuries. That’s a clear red flag, but suitors might feel better knowing that the Panthers have left the door open to a reunion. New GM Scott Fitterer told Short that’d he’d be willing to talk about a new deal — something less than his previous five-year, $80MM pact.
Short, 32, has played in just five games over the past two seasons. He’s torn both of his rotator cuffs in that span, preventing him from doing his usual fine work. Before all of that, Short was a key pillar of the Panthers’ defense. His first nod came in 2015 when he registered eleven sacks. In 2017, he turned in a 7.5-sack season. And, just two years ago, he earned his second Pro Bowl nod.
The veteran won’t match his previous $16MM AAV, but plenty of teams should be willing to put a deal on the table. For starters, there’s the Buffalo—Carolina pipeline; Brandon Beane and Sean McDermott would love to add him to the Bills’ already stacked interior. Alternatively, if former foe Dan Quinn wants to add Short to his defense, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones would surely break out the checkbook. The Seahawks also have a knack for signing big-name vets and a healthy Short would ease the sting of losing Jarran Reed. Though it’s hard to bank on Short’s health and availability, he’d be one heck of a summer addition on a one-year, ~$2MM deal.
Key Dates For 2022 NFL Offseason
The NFL and NFL Players Association have scheduled most of their key dates for the 2022 offseason. Here’s the breakdown, via NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (Twitter link):
- Franchise and Transition Tag Period: February 22 — March 8, 2022
- Start Of 2022 League Year and Free Agency: March 16, 2022 (4pm ET)
- 2022 NFL Draft: April 28-30, 2022
- Offseason Workouts: April 4 (for teams with new head coaches); April 18 (for all other teams)
- Restricted Free Agency Signing Period Ends: April 22, 2022
- Last Day To Match RFA Offer Sheets: April 27, 2022
The 2022 NFL Draft will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada as a mulligan for the pandemic-altered draft of 2020. On the whole, these dates are in line with the NFL’s usual calendar, save for 2020.
The 2022 salary cap is expected to fall around $208MM, up from this year’s $182.5MM figure. As it stands, the free agent class is slated to include Packers wide receiver Davante Adams, Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt, Bears wide receiver Allen Robinson, and Chiefs offensive tackle Orlando Brown Jr. Of course, for Adams and other stars, there’s still lots of time for an extension to keep them from the open market.
Latest On Browns, Baker Mayfield
The Browns have Baker Mayfield under contract through 2022, thanks to his fifth-year option. Now that the quarterback is firmly in extension territory, agent Jack Mills believes that a long-term arrangement is just around the corner. 
“I think something will be done this summer,” Mills said (via Tony Grossi of WKNR). “As far as trying to get a deal done, I don’t know if it’ll get done. It’s something that would be pretty much in the team’s control.”
Mayfield’s fully-guaranteed $18.858MM salary for ’22 is nothing to sneeze at, but it’s less than 14 other quarterbacks are making in average annual value. For his part, Mayfield says he isn’t sweating it.
“I’m in no rush because I’m just trying to win games,” the QB said earlier this month. “Like I said, it’ll handle itself. I’m sure [agents] Tom and Jack Mills are handling that. I don’t try and feed too much into that because it’s like wasting my time and energy and thought process on things I’m not in control of right now.”
After the Browns declined to pursue Aaron Rodgers this offseason, it’s safe to say that they’ll move fast to get Mayfield locked up for years to come.
Packers, Davante Adams “Beginning” Talks
Davante Adams has had preliminary discussions with the Packers about his contract (via Paulina Dedja of FOX News). For now, Adams is set to enter the final year of his deal — a now under-market four-year, $58MM pact. 
As expected, Adams reported to the team’s mandatory minicamp earlier this month. However, the All-Pro wideout did not participate in any of the on-field work. In essence, Adams avoided the possibility of ~$300K in fines while still sending a message to Packers brass. Now, his camp will continue to push for a new deal, though Adams says he has the Aaron Rodgers situation on his mind, in addition to money.
“That’ll play into it, but there’s been talks, just really just talks, but we haven’t really done anything or talked about anything that’s worth mentioning,” Adams said. “It’s kind of just been the beginning stage of talking, and we’ll figure out what happens. Hopefully, something gets figured out, but I’m just there to play ball either way. That stuff will take care of itself eventually.”
Adams, 28, has become one of the NFL’s premier wideouts since signing his extension in December 2017. The Packers did well to lock Adams down before he had compiled a 1,000-yard season — he now has multiple 1,000-yard campaigns, plus a 997-yard 2019, when he played just 12 games. Last year, Adams led the NFL with 98.1 receiving yards per contest and 18 total receiving TDs. Excluding Allen Robinson‘s franchise tag, Adams ranks as the NFL’s 16th-highest-paid receiver.
If Adams and the club can’t reach agreement between now and March of 2022, the Packers could still cuff him via the franchise tag. That wouldn’t be the preferred outcome for either party — the Packers haven’t used it since 2010, when they tagged defensive lineman Ryan Pickett.
Charges Dismissed For Derrius Guice
The domestic violence charges against former Washington running back Derrius Guice have been dismissed, as Justin Jouvenal of the Washington Post writes. Guice, 23, was facing potential time in prison.
Guice and the woman involved in the matter reached a resolution out of court, which helped bring the legal side of things to a close. The former LSU star was arrested for domestic violence charges in August of 2020, stemming from three alleged incidents. Soon after, the Washington Football Team release him. He remains a free agent and could sign with any club, though league discipline is still in play.
Guice was viewed by many as the second-best running back in the 2018 draft class behind Saquon Barkley, but rumored off-field issues caused him to fall to Washington at No. 59 overall. He missed his his entire rookie campaign after a summer ACL tear. Then, complications from surgery caused his rehab to drag. Last year, a knee injury put him back on IR and he appeared in just five games. On the field, he performed well in his limited snaps, averaging 5.8 yards per carry.