Vikings Want To Re-Sign Tom Johnson
Tom Johnson is set to hit the open market next Thursday, but the Vikings would like to keep him in the fold. The defensive tackle says the Vikings have “interest” in re-signing him, according to Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press (on Twitter). 
Johnson, for his part, would “definitely like to return,” but cautions, “you just never know how free agency is going to unfold.” The 34-year-old (35 in August) adds that he not looking for a multi-year deal, which should help his cause with the Vikings or any other interested club.
Last year, Johnson left the Vikings to sign a one-year deal with the Seahawks. In need of a roster spot before a September showdown with the Bears, the Seahawks cut him with the hope that they could quickly re-sign him to the roster. The Vikings swooped in and spoiled Seattle’s plans, signing Johnson to a fresh one-year deal.
In 14 games (13 for the Vikings, one with the Seahawks), Johnson tallied 4.5 sacks and 24 total tackles. Johnson ultimately graded out as just the No. 94 ranked interior defender in the NFL out of 112 qualified players, per Pro Football Focus, but the advanced metrics have never been high on the veteran.
Patriots Inquired On Packers’ Randall Cobb
There’s reason to believe the Patriots could target a quality wide receiver via trade. At some point last year, the Patriots inquired on Packers pass catcher Randall Cobb, according to Jay Glazer of The Athletic. 
The Packers started receiving Cobb inquiries late last offseason, but wound up hanging on to the veteran. In the spring of 2018, Cobb’s roster spot was in jeopardy, but the club opted to cut fellow wide receiver Jordy Nelson instead, saving them $10.2MM against the cap. Cobb’s contract, and his $12.72MM cap hit, remained on the books for 2018. This year, Cobb is a free agent after an injury-plagued season resulted in just 38 catches for 383 yards and two touchdowns.
The Patriots, in theory, could revisit the idea of adding Cobb on a low-cost one-year deal. News of their past Cobb interest may also indicate their willingness to part with some draft capital and open up the checkbook for an impact wide receiver.
Last summer, the Patriots decided against pursuing Odell Beckham Jr. as a replacement for Brandin Cooks, but one has to wonder whether they’d consider such a move now that OBJ is – somehow – involved in trade rumors after signing a mammoth extension. Other top flight WRs could be on the Pats’ radar, especially since this year’s rookie wide receiver class is a bit underwhelming.
Giants To Keep Olivier Vernon?
The Giants are leaning toward keeping linebacker Olivier Vernon, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Previously, it was believed that Vernon would either be traded or released outright. 
Vernon inked a massive five-year, $85MM deal with the Giants in 2016, under their old regime. The new regime explored the notion of moving Vernon in exchange for draft capital, but his contract is likely a barrier to getting a deal done.
Vernon, 28, gave the Giants a career-high 8.5 sacks in his first season with the club. He’s continued to get to the QB with 22 sacks over the course of three years, but injuries have cost him nine games over the last two campaigns. Last year, he averages four pressures per contest in eleven games.
Vernon is set to carry cap hits of $15.5MM in each of the next two seasons. Vernon would result in $11.5MM in cap savings, but would also saddle the team with $8MM in dead money. Meanwhile, productive edge rushers are hard to find, so moving on from Vernon doesn’t make a ton of sense on the whole.
Keeping Vernon will also give the Giants some consistency on defense, which they’ll need after moving on from star safety Landon Collins.
DRC Ends Retirement; Wants To Play In 2019
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie‘s retirement didn’t last long. The cornerback has been reinstated and wants to play in 2019, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
DRC, 33 in April, abruptly retired from football in late October. His announcement came days after Raiders coach Jon Gruden did not use him on a single snap in a one-sided loss to the Colts. It appears that the cornerback still has the passion to play, just not for the Raiders.
In 2017, Rodgers-Cromartie appeared in 15 games (six starts) for the Giants, managing 31 tackles, a half-sack, and one pass defensed while grading as the NFL’s No. 58 cornerback, per Pro Football Focus. Still, the signs of aging were there. On 25 targets, DRC allowed 7.2 yards per pass, more than double his 2016 average of 3.5. DRC also made headlines as he butted heads with coach Ben McAdoo and was briefly suspended by the team. Then, last year, he didn’t do a whole lot for the Raiders’ sagging defense.
The two-time Pro Bowler figures to draw interest on the open market, though he might have to wait until the second wave of free agency to find a home.
Buccaneers Pick Up Demar Dotson’s Option
The Buccaneers picked up the 2019 option on Demar Dotson‘s contract, according to a team announcement. With that, the right tackle will remain in the fold this season with a $4.8MM cap number. 
Per the terms of Dotson’s deal, the Bucs had until March 12 to trigger the additional year. However, the Bucs did not feel the need to wait until the eve of free agency to make the decision. Given the inflation of this year’s tackle market, it was an easy choice for Tampa to keep the 6’9″ starter on a relatively cheap deal.
Last year, Dotson missed 18 regular season games between 2015-2017, but missed only one contest in 2018. Playing opposite of Donovan Smith – who inked a lucrative new deal with the club on Tuesday – Dotson graded out as the 44th best tackle in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus.
Dotson, 34 in October, has been with the Bucs since joining the club as an undrafted free agent in 2009.
Giants Tender WR Corey Coleman
The Giants aren’t letting Corey Coleman get away. On Thursday, the G-Men applied the original round tender to the former first-round wide receiver, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
Because Coleman was a first-round selection, another team would have to give the Giants a first-round pick in order to sign Coleman and nullify his one-year, $2.03MM offer sheet. Needless to say, no team will be willing to pay that price for the Baylor product.
The Browns made Coleman a first-round pick in 2016, but he didn’t do a whole lot at the NFL level. As a rookie, he recorded 33 catches for 413 yards and three touchdowns, all of which still stand as career highs. After bouncing around with the Bills and Patriots, he hooked on with the Giants’ practice squad in October. He was quickly promoted to the varsity squad and recorded five catches for 71 yards across eight games. Coleman also averaged 26 yards on his 23 kickoff returns last year, so he figures to have a role on special teams in 2019.
Raiders Tender RB Jalen Richard, CB Daryl Worley
The Raiders placed second-round tenders on both running back Jalen Richard and cornerback Darryl Worley. Both players are now earmarked for one-year, $3.095MM deals with Oakland, unless they are signed to an offer sheet from a club willing to surrender a second-round pick. Meanwhile, Raiders safety Erik Harris received one-year, $2.025MM original round tender as a restricted free agent.
The move to tender Worley at the second-round level is a bit of a head scratcher. In his case, an original round tender would have called for another club to surrender a third-round pick to sign him. That would have been ample protection for a player who graded out as the seventh-worst cornerback in the NFL last year, according to Pro Football Focus, but the Raiders took the extra step of protecting him with the second-round level tender. Ultimately, it will eat up about $1MM extra in cap space, and small missteps like that tend to add up.
The decision to protect Richard, a former UDFA, with the second-round tender makes more sense. Last year, Richard managed 4.7 yards per carry in a limited sample size and he boasts a career 5.3 ypc average. He’ll return to a Raiders team that may or may not feature Doug Martin and Marshawn Lynch in 2019.
Ravens Re-Sign TE Nick Boyle
The Ravens re-signed tight end Nick Boyle, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). It’s a three-year, $18MM deal to keep Boyle off of the free agent market. 
We’ve heard a surprising amount of buzz about Boyle in recent weeks. Blocking tight ends don’t often garner a ton of attention, but Boyle reportedly had interest from about 20 teams this offseason. Those clubs will have to look elsewhere for blocking expertise as Boyle is now under contract with Baltimore through the 2021 season.
Boyle, 26, caught just 23 passes for 213 yards last season. However, he provided quality run and pass blocking across his 670 snaps. Last year, Boyle graded out as the No. 23 ranked tight end in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. Interestingly, even without much in the way of offensive production, he placed ahead of Eric Ebron on the list.
Boyle’s early career was marred by a pair of suspensions for performance-enhancing drugs, but he has missed just one game over the last two years. In that two-year span, the Ravens have rushed for a league-high 4,297 yards with Boyle as a tight end/fullback.
Teams Inquiring On Cardinals’ Josh Rosen
Multiple teams inquired about quarterback Josh Rosen’s availability at the combine last week, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com hears (Twitter links). However, the Cardinals have yet to give any indication that they are willing to move on from him. 
As Schefter notes, this doesn’t mean that the Cardinals will not shop Rosen at some point, but it is interesting that they have not responded to overtures so far. Lately, all signs have been pointing to the Cardinals using the No. 1 pick on quarterback Kyler Murray, but team brass could still be deciding between Murray and this year’s non-QB options.
The Redskins, for example, have considered making a run at Rosen, but they’re also thinking about drafting a signal caller of their own.
“I think where we are at this point, and like I said earlier, if there’s a quarterback there that we like at 15, 9 out of 10 we’ll go that route,” exec Doug Williams said. “If it’s not somebody we like, we’ll go with Colt and if we got to go out and get a veteran to work with him until that time comes, that’s probably what we’ll do.”
Rosen, 22, went 3-10 as the Cardinals’ starter last year. He completed just 55.2% of his throws with 11 touchdowns against 14 interceptions, but there were a myriad of issues with Arizona’s offense.
Broncos Release Darian Stewart
The Broncos released defensive back Darian Stewart, according to an announcement from Stewart himself. On Wednesday, the veteran took to Instagram to bid farewell to his fans in Denver. 
“Broncos country thank you all for the love you showed me and my family these past four years,” Stewart wrote. “But, it’s time for me to move on and I’m looking forward to the next chapter. I still got a whole lotta 🏈 left in me so I’ll see y’all real soon.”
Stewart was due roughly $5MM for 2019. By releasing him, the Broncos will save roughly $3.57MM against the cap with $2.8MM in dead money left over.
The Broncos signed Stewart to a two-year deal worth $4.25MM in 2015 and he quickly proved his worth. Stewart started in nearly all of his 58 games for the Broncos and recorded both a forced fumble and a sack in the team’s Super Bowl 50 victory.
Stewart saw some time at cornerback and free safety in ’17, but he played mostly at strong safety last year. This figures to be a crowded safety market, which is a bit of a double-edged sword for Stewart. Plenty of teams are in need of safeties, but Stewart will be a lower priority than Earl Thomas, Adrian Amos, Lamarcus Joyner, Tyrann Mathieu, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, and others.
Stewart graded out as just the No. 77 ranked safety in the NFL last year, according to Pro Football Focus. His 59.6 overall score was a massive step back from his first two seasons in Denver, which included a Pro Bowl-worthy performance in 2016.