Bears To Sign OT Jason Spriggs
The Bears have agreed to sign offensive tackle Jason Spriggs, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The former second-round pick of the Packers will ink a one-year deal with his new NFC North squad.
[RELATED: Bears’ Robertson-Harris Signs Tender]
Back in 2016, the Packers saw Spriggs as a future starter, so they traded up to land the Indiana product at No. 48 overall. At the pro level, he wasn’t able to stick as a first-stringer. For his three seasons in Green Bay, Spriggs was mostly a part-timer for his 29 games. In between that, in 2017, he was placed on injured reserve twice.
Spriggs’ deal likely doesn’t contain much, or anything, in the way of guaranteed dollars, but he’ll get a shot to crack the team’s 53-man roster. Meanwhile, the Bears are keeping most of their focus on the draft for the next week. With their original No. 19 pick belonging to the Raiders, their first selection won’t come until the second round at No. 43.
Browns To Keep Odell Beckham Jr.
The Browns say they aren’t trading Odell Beckham Jr. to the Vikings. Or, for that matter, any other team in the NFL. After talking with multiple Browns sources, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) reports that OBJ is “firmly” in the team’s plans for 2020. 
[RELATED: Browns Say OBJ/Vikings Rumblings Are “Completely False”]
Rapoport’s sources in Cleveland “literally laughed” when asked about the prospect of dealing the wide receiver. ESPN’s Adam Schefter’s source echoes those sentiments, saying that the Browns have had no discussions this offseason about trading OBJ (Twitter link). Despite the drama and weirdness that comes with Beckham, he stands as one of the most talented receivers in the league. The Browns – who have been denying trade speculation for months – have every reason to try and make things work.
In his first year with the Browns, Beckham had his worst performance in any full season. But, before he relocated to Ohio, Beckham was an absolute monster in New York. OBJ topped 1,300 yards in each of his first three seasons, including a career-high 1,450 yards in 2015. And, after his lost 2017 season, he still managed 77 catches, 1,052 yards, and six touchdowns in just 12 games.
The former first-rounder left the Giants as one of their all-time highest ranked receivers in catches, receiving yards, and touchdown receptions. So far, he’s indicated that he wants to stick around in Cleveland to do the same for the Browns.
Besides, they paid a fortune for Beckham. The Browns shipped 2019 first- and third-round picks to the Giants, plus Jabrill Peppers and Kevin Zeitler, to acquire Olivier Vernon and the star receiver.
Jets Eyeing OL At No. 11?
It’s no secret that the Jets could use some help at wide receiver. And, with the No. 11 pick, they could have the opportunity to take CeeDee Lamb or Jerry Jeudy, who stand as the cream of a rich WR crop. Meanwhile, they also need to protect quarterback Sam Darnold (and his spleen), so they could opt for offensive line help in the first round. As Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets, the Jets have done their homework on this year’s top big men. 
[RELATED: Jets Could Also Start The WR Run At No. 11]
Before the travel restrictions, the Jets had dinner and a private workout with Georgia’s Andrew Thomas and Alabama’s Jedrick Wills, per Pelissero. He also hears that they’ve hosted Louisville’s Mekhi Becton on a top 30 visit and Zoom-chatted with Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs. They’re the four best offensive lineman in this year’s class, so there’s no guarantee that any of them will slip to Gang Green. Thomas has also garnered interest from the Dolphins (No. 5), Pelissero hears.
Of that quintet, Wirfs is widely viewed as the most NFL-ready. He also offers serious athleticism for his size (6’5″, 320 pounds), plus versatility. At Iowa, he played primarily at left and right tackle. Pro scouts also believe that he has the ability to move inside and play guard.
The top 10 already has teams in need of line help and other teams are contemplating trades to land one of this year’s best OLs. The Bucs and Broncos have serious interest in moving up the board and they could leapfrog the Jets on Thursday.
Andy Dalton: There’s “A Scenario” Where I Go Back To Bengals
Andy Dalton isn’t sure what’s next for his NFL career, but he’s not dismissing the possibility that he stays with the Bengals. With less than a week to go before the Bengals take the podium – and, most likely, select LSU quarterback Joe Burrow – Dalton says there’s “a scenario” in which he could stay in Cincy. 
[RELATED: Bengals “Maxing Out” Their Time With Joe Burrow]
“I truly believe they want what’s best for me, but I understand it’s a business, and you know how that goes,” Dalton told NFL Network. “With the first pick, if they take a quarterback like everyone expects, that could trigger something. There’s even a scenario where I go back there.”
Dalton served as the Bengals’ starter for years, right up until he was benched and replaced with rookie Ryan Finley midway through the 2019 season. Dalton took his job back later on, but he struggled – the veteran connected on just 57.9% of his passing attempts with seven touchdowns against six interceptions.
Ahead of his age-33 season, Dalton is likely on course to change jerseys. At one point, Dalton said he wanted to start in 2020. Ultimately, he may have to settle for a QB2 role, or wait until late in the offseason to see if an injury opens up a starting job. The former seems more likely, especially since training camp will probably be shortened or modified in some fashion.
For what it’s worth, the Bengals haven’t ruled out a future with Dalton either. If they do move forward with the vet, he’ll almost certainly have to agree to a trim on his $17.5MM base salary.
Dalton holds the Bengals’ all-time record with 204 career passing touchdowns. Unfortunately, he’s also three seasons removed from his best work.
Titans Won’t Rule Out Jadeveon Clowney
Will the Titans be the team to land Jadeveon Clowney? Titans GM Jon Robinson won’t rule it out. 
“We’ll see,” Robinson said (via Jim Wyatt of the team website). “Like I said a couple of weeks ago, we’ve had some discussions there and we’ve had some dialogue back and forth. You never close the door on anything.”
So, there’s a chance that the Titans will make a serious run at the former No. 1 overall pick, even though they’re not the favorites to sign him. In a recent PFR poll, less than 8% of you predicted that Clowney would be heading to Nashville. By all accounts, the incumbent Seahawks and Browns (not necessarily in that order) are the most likely destinations for Clowney.
At one point, the Seahawks were offering Clowney a deal worth $13-$15MM per year. That could be enough, or close to enough, to get something done. Clowney has backed down from his initial ask of ~$20MM per season and, realistically, he’ll have to scale back his expectations as time goes on.
The Titans currently have about $21MM in cap room, but their incoming draft class will chip away at that number. They could still eek out enough space for Clowney, but they might prefer to spend in another area after picking up Vic Beasley. Beasley, the No. 8 pick in the 2015 draft, tallied eight sacks last year. Clowney, meanwhile, had only three sacks.
Texans’ Bill O’Brien On DeAndre Hopkins Trade
The Texans have been roundly criticized for the DeAndre Hopkins trade, but head coach Bill O’Brien doesn’t seem to be having any second thoughts about the swap. In a virtual press conference with reporters, O’Brien defended the deal that brought running back David Johnson to Houston. 
[RELATED: David Johnson Passes Texans Physical]
“We feel very, very good about being able to get the 40th pick, being able to get David Johnson,” O’Brien said (via Reuters). “We feel really good about when we looked at the analytics of it, based on the production that was leaving our team and the production that we were bringing in, and then what we were able to do. Again, it’s very incomplete, and we have several roster moves left to go, including a draft and all the other things that I mentioned earlier. So we feel very good about the value that we got from the trade.”
The Texans didn’t stop dealing after that. Soon after shipping Hopkins to the Cardinals, they sent their original 2020 second-rounder to the Rams for Brandin Cooks while holding on to the No. 40 pick from Arizona. In short, they dealt one of the game’s most dangerous wide receivers for a lesser receiver with a history of concussions and once elite running back who has been slowed by multiple injuries. Fans in Houston are none-too-pleased, but O’Brien is asking them to be patient.
“I think the best thing I can tell the fans is to please — because I know the media’s job is to evaluate right away, I get that, I have a lot of respect for the media, I’ve always said that — but I think we have to let it all play out,” O’Brien said. “Let it play out. Let the whole thing play out, whether it’s that trade or anything else that we’ve done. I’d say let’s review it a year from now, two years from now, three years from now. Let’s let it all play out.”
In a “down” 2019, Hopkins still managed 104 catches for 1,165 yards and seven touchdowns. Johnson, meanwhile, carried the ball just 94 times and averaged 3.7 yards per try.
Browns: We’re Not Trading OBJ To Vikings
This week, rumors of an Odell Beckham Jr. trade with the Vikings nearly broke the internet. Today, Browns Chief Strategy Officer Paul DePodesta went on the record to pour cold water on those rumblings. 
[RELATED: Browns Eyeing Trade Back For Boise State OL?]
“In short, I will just say it was completely false,” DePodesta told reporters (Twitter link via Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com). “It’s a frustrating a little bit. I think it is pretty clear we are trying to build at this point…The idea that we would take away from that core at this moment just does not make a whole lot of sense and is not really something that we are exploring at all.”
Of course, OBJ is no stranger to the pages of Pro Football Rumors. The mercurial wide receiver has been viewed as a potential trade candidate for some time. In December, Jay Glazer of FOX Sports reported that the former first-round pick wanted out of Cleveland. And, according to Glazer, he went so far as to tell opposing players, “come get me.” Soon after, Beckham did his best to quell the speculation:
“I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be here,” OBJ said. “We’ll figure this thing out. It’s just too special to leave…We’re going to be here. We’re going to do it again. And we’re going to be what we felt like we should’ve been.”
Still, the rumor mill continued to churn. The 49ers, who were in talks with the Giants before Beckham was traded to the Browns, were thought to be a possible destination for him just last month. But, despite all of the friction, the new regime led by Andrew Berry insisted that OBJ was still in the plans.
Beckham finished 2019 with his worst career full-season stat line: 74 receptions, 1,035 yards, and four touchdowns. Still, he remains one of the league’s most dangerous offensive weapons.
With the exception of the Giants, just about every NFL team would welcome OBJ into the lineup. The Vikings, however, just moved on from wide receiver drama by trading Stefon Diggs to the Bills. After that deal, giving up valuable draft picks for Beckham would make little sense.
This Date In Transactions History: Patriots Draft Tom Brady
Today marks the 20th anniversary of the 2000 NFL Draft, the day the Patriots took a flyer on a quarterback named Tom Brady with the No. 199 overall pick. He watched and waited for his name to be called behind 198 other players, including six other quarterbacks. And, two decades later, he’s still not quite over it. Earlier today, Brady posted a screenshot of the QBs drafted in front of him with a caption: “Nope, I haven’t forgot.” 
[RELATED: Brady On Leaving The Patriots]
Many of the quarterbacks taken in front of Brady have been largely forgotten by football fans, including Giovanni Carnazzi (49ers, No. 65 overall), Chris Redman (Ravens, No. 75), and Spergon Wynn (Browns, No. 183). Others, like Chad Pennington (Jets, No. 18) and Marc Bulger (Saints, No. 168) found some success at the pro level – but nothing like Brady.
The Jets, 49ers, Ravens, Steelers, Saints, Browns, and every other team in the league have been kicking themselves ever since. Then again, hindsight is 20/20, and few can claim that they envisioned Brady as an NFL starter, let alone a league legend. Brady got his first real opportunity in 2001 when Drew Bledsoe suffered a frightening injury. Fast forward to today, he has 14 Pro Bowl appearances, nine Super Bowl appearances, and six Super Bowl rings. This year, in his age-43 season, Brady will try for his seventh ring with the Buccaneers.
The Patriots did pretty well for themselves with that sixth-round pick. And, now, they have the unenviable task of trying to replace him.
Raiders QB Nathan Peterman Signs Tender
Raiders quarterback Nathan Peterman has signed his restricted free agency tender, as Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Ditto for offensive tackle David Sharpe. Both players will return to Las Vegas on one-year, $2.133MM deals. 
[RELATED: Raiders’ Morrow Signs RFA Tender]
Peterman, 26 in May, was a fifth-round pick of the Bills back in 2017. The Bills cut him midway through his second pro year. Pro Football Reference’s “indexed” statistics, which account and adjust for different eras of the game, rated Peterman dead last among all QBs since 1970 in passer rating, yards per attempt, interception percentage, and numerous other passing statistics.
Still, several teams took an interest in him when he hit the open market. The Raiders signed him towards the end of ’18 and he rewarded their confidence with a surprisingly strong preseason in ’19. Peterman connected on 60 of his 84 passes for 475 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions. But, just before the start of the year, he landed on IR.
Earlier this week, fellow Raiders RFA Nicholas Morrow also inked his tender. Tendered at the second-round level, he’ll see a bump from $645K to $3.26MM.
49ers’ Matt Breida Signs Tender
49ers running back Matt Breida has signed his tender, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Per the terms of the second-round level cuff, Breida will earn $3.1MM in 2020. 
[RELATED: 49ers Re-Sign Verrett, Johnson]
The Niners reportedly used the second-round tender on Breida because they sensed that at least one other team was fixing to poach him at the original-round level. That doesn’t necessarily mean that he’s in the team’s plans for 2020 – reportedly, the Niners tendered him with the thought that he could be traded at a later date.
With Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman in the fold, Breida isn’t on track for a major role in the 49ers’ backfield. Jerick McKinnon is also in the mix – many thought that the Niners would cut Jet this offseason, but he’s on the books at a cheaper rate following his mid-March haircut.
At times, Breida impressed – he’s averaged at least 5.1 yards per tote in each of the last two seasons. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to stay healthy. Over the course of three seasons, the Georgia Southern product has totaled just 381 carries.