Jaguars’ Andrew Norwell Takes Pay Cut
Andrew Norwell is staying put. On Monday, the veteran guard agreed to restructure his existing contract into a one-year deal with $9MM fully guaranteed (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter). Through bonuses, Norwell can earn up to $12MM in 2021. 
Norwell earned first-team All-Pro honors with the Panthers, paving the way to a five-year, $66.5MM Jaguars deal in 2018. At the time, the deal made him the highest paid guard in the league.
He hasn’t reprised that performance yet, leading the Jaguars to shop him this offseason. There were no takers for the remainder of that deal, so the two sides went to the bargaining table. Norwell will give the Jaguars some relief and, in exchange, he’ll get to hit the open market one year earlier.
Norwell was limited to eleven games in 2018 as he dealt with an ankle injury. On the plus side, he’s been mostly healthy over the last two years. He played/started 16 games in 2019 and missed only three games last year.
The restructuring takes one item off of the Jaguars’ to-do list, freeing them to shop for other needs, including running back.
Ravens To Sign Kevin Zeitler
The Ravens have agreed to sign former Giants guard Kevin Zeitler (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter). Once official, it’ll be a three-year, $22.5MM pact with $16MM in guaranteed money. 
[RELATED: Ravens Re-Sign Pernell McPhee]
The Giants dropped Zeitler last week to save about $9.6MM in cap space. The Giants shopped Zeitler before releasing him, but interested teams like the Ravens stayed patient because they expected him to get cut.
Zeitler was the Giants’ best offensive lineman, so the move was more about finances than football. The Ravens, meanwhile, get to fill the longstanding void left by Marshal Yanda‘s 2020 retirement. Tyre Phillips, Patrick Mekari, and Ben Powers all tried their hand at right guard, but no one in that trio was able to replace Yanda’s protection.
The Ravens said they’d prioritize blocking for Lamar Jackson this offseason and Zeitler goes a long way towards addressing that need. Over the last three years, Pro Football Focus has Zeitler ranked as the 17th best guard in the NFL. He’s also been reliable with at least 15 starts in each of the past six seasons.
Eagles Want Third Or Fourth Rounder For Zach Ertz
The Eagles want a third or fourth-round pick for Zach Ertz, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link). Meanwhile, the Birds continue to insist that they won’t release the tight end. 
Ertz wants to stay with the Eagles, despite clashing with GM Howie Roseman in the midst of extension talks. In turn, the Eagles pondered trading him before the 2020 deadline. Then, Ertz’s ankle injury brought those discussions to a halt.
Now, at the age of 30, Ertz is a year removed from his usual fine work. He finished 2020 with just 36 catches for 335 yards and one touchdown. But, in 2019, he notched 88 receptions for 916 yards and six TDs. And, in 2018, he earned All-Pro honors, cementing himself as one of the league’s very best TEs. There should be plenty of interest in Ertz, though teams know that the Eagles are in something of a bind. He’s got one year left on his current deal, counting $12.4MM against the books. Trading or cutting him would save the Eagles almost $5MM in cap space and they need all of the breathing room they can get.
For his part, Ertz is growing “increasingly impatient” as things drag on, according to Pelissero. One way or another, it sounds like there will be a resolution before the end of the week.
Packers Re-Sign Aaron Jones
Aaron Jones is off the board. On Sunday, the Packers agreed to a four-year, $48MM deal with their star running back (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). The deal ties Jones to Green Bay through the 2024 season and comes with a $13MM signing bonus. 
[RELATED: Packers Rework P. Smith’s Contract]
Jones could have gone into free agency without any restrictions and cashed in big. However, the current climate left a lot of uncertainty. With this deal, Jones and agent Drew Rosenhaus have opted for security over upside, though Jones has plenty of dollars coming his way.
The franchise tag would have given Jones around $9MM. Instead, he’s getting an average of $12MM/year with more guaranteed money than he was offered in last year’s round of talks. It took a little longer, but Jones got his big pay day just like 2017 running back draftees Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, Dalvin Cook, and Joe Mixon. Before the deal, the Dolphins were heavily connected to Jones. Now, they’ll have to look elsewhere for help.
Jones has averaged over 1,500 yards from scrimmage and 15 TDs over the past two seasons, positioning him as one of the best running backs in the NFL. Historically, teams have been reluctant to shell out big bucks and guaranteed years to RBs, but Jones has proven his value multiple times over.
In three of his four NFL campaigns, Jones has averaged 5.5 yards per carry. While he missed the Pro Bowl in 2019, he led the NFL with 19 touchdowns. There was no oversight last year as Jones turned in his second straight 1,000-yard season. He averaged a career-high 78.4 yards per game in 2020 and the Packers will be counting on more of the same in 2021, especially with Jamaal Williams on track for the open market.
Latest On Giants, Leonard Williams
There hasn’t been much progress between the Giants and Leonard Williams yet, according to Dan Duggan of The Athletic (on Twitter). Ideally, the Giants would like to hammer out a deal before the start of the tampering period on Monday. 
A new deal for Williams could reduce his 2021 cap hit, giving the Giants some sorely needed flexibility with the reduced cap. As it stands, Williams is set to earn $19.35MM in 2021, a 20% pay raise over last year’s franchise tag.
[RELATED: Giants Want To Re-Sign Tomlinson]
Last year’s tag raised a lot of eyebrows; Williams responded by dropping jaws. In 2020, he posted a career-high 11.5 sacks, plus 14 total tackles for loss and 30 quarterback hits. Now, Williams is looking for a long-term deal to match his performance. That’ll likely cost around ~$20MM per annum.
The Giants have until mid-July to work out a long-term deal with Williams, but they have an increased sense of urgency with free agency on the horizon. The Giants want to go shopping for help at wide receiver, edge rusher, and other key positions, but they don’t want to do it on a shoestring budget. In turn, Williams’ camp has been happy to slow-play negotiations.
The extra room would also help the Giants to retain their own free agents, including fellow defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson. Tomlinson graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 25-ranked interior defender in 2020. Now, he’s in line for multi-year deal worth $8MM-$10MM per season.
Latest On Dolphins, Tua Tagovailoa
With increasing chatter of a blockbuster trade for Deshaun Watson, Dolphins head coach Brian Flores did his best to back Tua Tagovailoa. In a chat with reporters this week, Flores stressed that he’s “excited” to work with the rising second-year pro.
[RELATED: Texans HC David Culley On Deshaun Watson]
“You think about his situation last year, coming off the hip and throwing him into the fire,” Flores said (Twitter link via Omar Kelly of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel). “[He] started nine games and made a lot of improvement throughout the season. Had some up and downs. I’m excited about the Year 1 to 2 jump…This time, in the offseason, is really going to be helpful to him and all the rookies. I’m excited about working with him.”
Tagovailoa averaged just 6.3 yards per throw in his his rookie season. He finished out with eleven touchdowns against five interceptions in nine starts, 1,814 total passing yards, and a ~64% completion rate. Of course, there was nothing to suggest that the former Alabama star will be a bust, and he did go 6-3 as a starter. However, some have wondered whether the ‘Fins confidence in him has wavered, especially since they deployed Ryan Fitzpatrick as a reliever. Regardless of Tagovailoa’s long-term potential, Watson would give them a far better chance to win straight away.
Between Tagovailoa and the No. 3 overall pick in this year’s draft, the Dolphins could present the Texans with the best package of any club in the Watson sweepstakes. Still, new head coach David Culley continues to insist that Watson will be staying put. Meanwhile, in Miami, Flores says that he’ll continue to build the offense around Tagovailoa.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/13/21
Teams have until March 17 to extend tender offers to their restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents. . Some teams are already making their calls in advance of March 17. We’ll keep tabs on the latest here:
RFAs
Non-Tendered:
- Chargers: OL Cole Toner
- Steelers: OLB Olasunkanmi Adeniyi
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Steelers: LB Robert Spillane
Dez Bryant Wants To Join Cardinals
Former Cowboys star Dez Bryant says he would like to join up with the Cardinals (via TMZ). It’s not clear whether the interest is mutual, however. 
“I think that would be dope being next to my boy D Hop [DeAndre Hopkins], [and] Christian Kirk, [and] Kyler Murray,” Bryant said. “I think they have a dope offense. I feel like they got a dope defense. I think they got a dope coach … If I had to choose, yeah, if that opportunity presented itself, I think I would take it.”
The Cardinals offense is, in fact, dope, which means that the team doesn’t necessarily have room for Bryant. A Larry Fitzgerald retirement could open up a spot for Bryant but, even then, there’d be a drop-off in production. Bryant, who will turn 33 this year, had just six grabs in six games for 47 yards and two touchdowns. No one expected Bryant to leapfrog Marquise Brown in the Ravens’ pecking order, but Bryant was also far behind Miles Boykin and Willie Snead IV on the depth chart. Meanwhile, Fitzgerald had 54 catches, 409 yards, and one touchdown in a relative down year — and he’s about five years older than Bryant.
During his heyday with the Cowboys, Bryant totaled 7,459 receiving yards and 73 touchdowns. His best season came in 2014 when he led NFL with 16 receiving touchdowns, leading to his five-year, $70MM Dallas deal.
Patriots Re-Sign QB Cam Newton
2:17pm: Newton’s contract marks a raise from his 2020 Patriots pact, but incentives comprise much of the deal. The former MVP passer’s accord carries a $5MM base value, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. This includes a $2MM signing bonus and $1.5MM guaranteed. The deal also contains $1.5MM in per-game roster bonuses, per Garafolo, who adds the other $9MM is tied to incentives.
9:45am: The Patriots will re-sign quarterback Cam Newton to a one-year deal, as ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter tweets. The new deal could be “worth close to” $14MM, though the details of the deal are unclear. 
Newton’s new contract will not preclude the Patriots from adding another quarterback this offseason, Schefter hears. From the sound of it, Newton’s base value is rather low, making this yet another low-risk/high-reward pact for the Patriots.
Newton joined the Patriots last offseason to replace Tom Brady. Starting in 15 games, Newton threw for 2,657 yards while completing 65.8% of his throws — more accurate than most of his NFL seasons. Unfortunately, he also threw for just eight touchdowns against ten interceptions.
Newton started strong, but the former MVP dovetailed later in the year. His COVID-19 interruption didn’t help matters; nor did injuries to Julian Edelman, David Andrews, and Rex Burkhead. All in all, Newton went 7-8 as a starter and the Patriots finished 7-9.
Still, Bill Belichick reportedly loved coaching Newton. Despite concerns about his arm strength and his long-term health, the Patriots were happy to re-up Newton for another low-cost season.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/12/21
The restricted free agent and exclusive rights free agent tender decision deadline is fast approaching. Some teams are already making their calls in advance of March 17. We’ll keep tabs on the latest here:
RFAs
Non-tendered:
- Cardinals: WR Trent Sherfield
- Chargers: TE Stephen Anderson
- Seahawks: G Jordan Simmons
- Washington Football Team: CB Danny Johnson
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Chargers: T Tyree St. Louis
- 49ers: OL Daniel Brunskill
- Seahawks: DB Ryan Neal