Lions Never Offered HC Job To Matt Campbell?
This week, it was rumored that the Lions offered an eight-year, $68.5MM deal to Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell. But, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, the Lions never put an offer on the table. 
Furthermore, Birkett hears that the Cyclones coach only spoke to the Lions once during the process. And, while other notable names were tied to the job, new HC Dan Campbell was the only candidate to ever receive an offer to be the Lions’ head coach.
It’s possible that something got lost in the game of telephone. Or, perhaps Matt Campbell’s camp is looking to increase the coach’s buzz. For what it’s worth, Dan said he sensed that the Lions were extremely bullish on Matt.
“Just in regards to the head coach search, how I ended up here, one of things would be that I told my agent, Rick Smith, I said make sure that they think I’m Matt Campbell, so I think that’s how this has really worked out great for me,” the Lions head coach said (via Birkett). “So now that I’m in the seat, I am Dan Campbell. But I do know this, you can’t go wrong with a Campbell.”
In addition to the Campbells, the Lions were also connected to Darrell Bevell, Eric Bieniemy, Todd Bowles, Marvin Lewis, Urban Meyer, Robert Saleh, and Arthur Smith.
This Date In NFL Transactions History: Bills Release Richie Incognito
On this date in 2018, the Bills moved on from their bizarre saga with Richie Incognito. They released the offensive lineman from the reserve/retired list, paving the way for him to play for another team. At the time, no one knew whether the veteran would get that opportunity. 
Incognito, a four-time Pro Bowler and one of the league’s best guards, made headlines for all the wrong reasons throughout his career. In 2013, he was alleged to have bullied and disparaged Dolphins teammate Jonathan Martin, which prompted Martin to leave the team and the NFL to suspend Incognito. After missing half of ’13 and all of ’14, he returned to the league with the Bills.
On the field, Incognito continued his excellence. He played every single snap for the Bills in 2015, earned a fresh ~$16MM deal prior to 2016, and graded out as one of the league’s best guards in 2017. The advanced metrics showed that Incognito was elite throughout those three years in Buffalo – he placed No. 2, No, 7, and No. 12 in the league in each of those seasons, according to Pro Football Focus.
Then, things turned once again. In March of 2018, Incognito agreed to rework the remainder of his contract, cutting his base salary in half. Weeks later, he fired his agent via Twitter. Then, Incognito retired, citing health issues and dissatisfaction with his deal.
“It pisses me the [expletive] off,” Incognito said. “The contract and all that pissed me [off] and all that, but (retiring) has nothing to do with that.”
The Bills placed Incognito on the retired list on April 12, 2018. On April 15, 2018, he requested his release. Then, on May 21, 2018 – about six weeks after Incognito announced that he was done with football – the Bills granted his request. Two days after that, Incognito caused a scene at a gym in Florida and told police that he believed he was being tracked by FBI agents for his possession of secret NSA documents. One psychiatric hold and a few months later, Incognito was arrested at an Arizona funeral parlor for threatening employees who refused to cut off his father’s head, which he wanted for research purposes.
Most in the football world figured that would mark the end of Incognito’s career, but Jon Gruden gave him another chance to play in 2019. Towards the end of another strong season, the Raiders inked the veteran to a new two-year, $14MM deal. Now, the veteran is in free agency limbo after missing all but two games last year due to injury. There was early chatter that the Raiders could bring him back, but that might not happen in the midst of their OL revamp. It’s not clear how much Incognito has left in the tank, but he’s not far removed from ’19 when he ranked as PFF’s 14th best guard.
Browns Sign DT Tommy Togiai
The Browns have inked fourth-round pick Tommy Togiai, per a club announcement. With the defensive tackle in the fold, the Browns now have five of their 2021 selections under contract.
Togiai, a bit undersized at 6’1″ and 300 pounds, gets to stay local after wrapping up his career at Ohio State. In his final year on campus, Togiai notched 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. Those numbers don’t jump off the page, but he was one of the nation’s top-ranked DTs coming out of high school, so he has potential to outperform his draft slot.
Some college grads are eager to gas up the car and move somewhere new. That’s not the case for Togiai, who already feels at home.
“It’s great,” Togiai said (via Dan Labbe of Cleveland.com). “I love the state of Ohio, my time at Ohio State and Columbus, and now I get to go to another city in Cleveland. I’m excited to get up there. When I first made that decision to go to Ohio State, I never knew this would happen. I’m just excited to just get back to Ohio and get back to work.”
The Browns have just three unsigned rookies left in first rounder cornerback Greg Newsome II, second-round linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and third-round wide receiver Anthony Schwartz.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/20/21
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Atlanta Falcons
- Waived: TE Jack Batho
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: DT Treyvon Hester
Cleveland Browns
- Waived: TE Logan Markway
Denver Broncos
- Waived: QB Case Cookus
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: T Timon Parris
New England Patriots
- Signed: S Adrian Colbert, LS Wes Farnsworth
Lions Offered Matt Campbell $68MM+ Deal
The Lions have their new head coach in Dan Campbell. But, before they inked the former Saints assistant to a six-year contract, they offered an eight-year, $68.5MM megadeal to Iowa State coach Matt Campbell, according to Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports (on Twitter).
[RELATED: Lions Sign Penei Sewell]
M. Campbell was a hot commodity in this last cycle, starting with early interest from the Jets. He was an early Gang Green favorite after Adam Gase got canned, but he declined to meet with owner Christopher Johnson and GM Joe Douglas. Instead of going to New York or Detroit, the Cyclones coach stayed put to build on last year’s 9-3 record.
Matt Campbell has been on the NFL radar for a while. The Browns, for example, had him on the list before they hired Freddie Kitchens in 2018. Hearing the footsteps, Iowa State locked up their young HC with a lucrative extension through the 2025 season.
The Lions haven’t made the playoffs since 2016, so they were willing to invest heavily in their next head coach. They might not have landed Matt, but they firmly believe that Dan can turn things around, as shown by his six-year commitment.
Details On Ryan Kerrigan’s New Eagles Deal
Ryan Kerrigan’s with the Eagles now and he’s going to make a whole lot less than he did with the Washington Football Team. The veteran’s deal with Philly includes just $1.425MM in guaranteed money, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
The $1.425MM is already in the bank, by way of his signing bonus. Beyond that, he’ll earn a base salary of $1.075MM, plus the opportunity to earn more through incentives. If he hits all of those bonuses, the edge rusher could top out at $3.5MM (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). The deal, Yates notes, includes four voidable seasons to spread out the cap impact. By deploying one of his favorite tricks, GM Howie Roseman will have Kerrigan on the books for just $1.36MM this year.
Meanwhile, Kerrigan’s last contract with WFT paid $11.5MM in base salary last year. It was non-guaranteed, but new head coach Ron Rivera kept him on board. Then, Kerrigan was hardly used. The team’s all-time leader in sacks was relegated to a reserve role and notched just 5.5 sacks in 2020.
Kerrigan will likely see similar responsibilities with the Eagles, with Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett, and Josh Sweat in their DE group.
Jaguars Sign Tim Tebow
It’s officially official. On Thursday, the Jaguars confirmed that they’ve signed former University of Florida superstar Tim Tebow. Tebow, who made his name at quarterback, will attempt to return to football as a tight end.
“‘I want to thank the Jaguars for the opportunity to compete and earn the chance to be part of this team,’ Tebow said. “I know it will be a challenge, but it is a challenge I embrace. I am dedicated to taking the direction of our coaching staff and learning from my teammates. I appreciate everyone’s support as I embark on this new journey.”
Tebow hasn’t played in a real NFL game since the 2012 season. His last pro football stint was with the Eagles during the 2015 preseason. He’s since attempted a pro baseball career, spending time in the minor leagues with the Mets, which he just recently retired from.
All in all, Tebow’s NFL career spans three seasons, two with the Broncos and one with the Jets. As a first-round rookie in Denver, Tebow threw for 654 yards and five touchdowns, while adding 227 rushing yards and six touchdowns on the ground. In 2011, Tebow played in 14 games and passed for 1,729 yards and 12 scores, plus 660 yards and six TDs rushing. Tebow logged a playoff win that year, but he wasn’t necessarily the driver behind their success.
Now, the two-time national champion at Florida will reunite with Urban Meyer and try to make the Jaguars as a tight end. For what it’s worth, the Mets’ minor league affiliates listed the 6-foot-3 Tebow at a TE-ready 245 pounds. The Jaguars now roster six TEs in total: Chris Manhertz, fifth-round pick Luke Farrell, Tyler Davis, James O’Shaughnessy, Ben Ellefson, and Tebow.
Lions Sign Penei Sewell
The Lions have their first-round pick in the fold. On Wednesday, offensive tackle Penei Sewell agreed to terms on his rookie contract (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 
Per the terms of his slot, the No. 7 overall pick will receive a four-year, $24.1MM fully guaranteed deal. That guaranteed sum includes a hefty $14.9MM signing bonus. There was little doubt that Sewell would sign — rookie contracts are fairly cookie-cutter, thanks to the slotting system. Still, agents and execs will sometimes haggle over the finer points, such as offset language.
Sewell opted out of Oregon’s 2020 season, but the 6’6″, 330-pound prospect was absolutely stellar in 2019. He surrendered zero sacks in the previous year and gave up just seven quarterback pressures in total. The advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus were also fond of his work. In 2019, Sewell finished No. 1 in the country with a run-blocking grade of 95.3 while placing third in pass-blocking (91.1).
The Outland Trophy winner was absent from the Lions’ rookie minicamp after testing positive for COVID-19. Fortunately, it sounds like he’s okay and will be able to join the rest of his teammates soon.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/19/21
Today’s minor moves:
Atlanta Falcons
- Claimed off waivers (from Cowboys): OT William Sweet
Chicago Bears
- Signed: G/C Adam Redmond
- Waived: G Gage Cervenka
New England Patriots
- Signed: LS Wes Farnsworth
NFLPA Exec Bashes Bills GM For Vaccine Comments
Back in May, Bills GM Brandon Beane said that he would release players who refused to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Soon after, the league office got in touch with Beane to let him know that teams cannot cut players solely for that reason. Now, NFLPA chief exec DeMaurice Smith has weighed in with his thoughts. 
[RELATED: NFL Says Teams Can’t Cut Players For Refusing Vaccine]
“When a general manager speaks out and says something that is not only inconsistent with league policy, but just has a rank disregard for the rights of our players, I don’t know any other way of characterizing that other than just the stupidity that underlines it,” Smith said (via Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal.)
Given the NFL’s clarification, Smith probably doesn’t have much to worry about on this front. Still, his comments show that the players’ union will be keeping a watchful eye on the waiver wire for any questionable cuts.
Beane’s comments raise a number of questions about a player’s personal right to say no to the vaccine. Beyond that, one has to wonder how the NFL would handle this type of situation in practice. What happens if a team cuts someone for refusing the vaccine while citing their performance as the reason for the release? In that case, the union would face an uphill battle.