49ers Open To Earl Mitchell Return
The Niners will not exercise Earl Mitchell‘s option for 2019, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s off the team. GM John Lynch has not closed the door on bringing the defensive tackle back at a lower price, Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com tweets. 
Mitchell probably would have liked to play out the final two years of his four-year contract, but on the plus side, his release gives him an opportunity to explore the open market sooner. There should be a healthy market for his services as well – Mitchell offers plenty of experience and he won’t turn 32 until September.
Still, Mitchell may have to wait until after the first wave of free agency in March to find his next landing spot. Typically, teams are focused on higher-ticket items when free agency first gets underway and players of Mitchell’s caliber usually don’t get real attention until the end of the month.
Mitchell finished out the 2018 season with 28 tackles across 14 games (12 starts). Had he been retained by the Niners, he would have counted for a $4.45MM cap figure in 2019.
Contract Details: Fitzgerald, Cardinals, Jags
Here are the contract details on some of the NFL’s latest deals:
- Larry Fitzgerald‘s new deal with the Cardinals includes a base salary of $11M plus incentives, a source tells Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The pact does not include a signing bonus, but he did manage to match his $11MM salary from 2018. That’s not a bad deal for the veteran wide receiver given his drop in production last season.
- The Jaguars‘ three-year deal with safety Jarrod Wilson is worth $9MM, a source tells NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (Twitter link). The contract calls for a $1MM signing bonus, $1.5MM guaranteed, and up to $1.75MM in playtime incentives over the last two years of the deal. Prior to the new deal, he was slated to be a restricted free agent this offseason.
- Seantrel Henderson‘s new one-year deal with the Texans can be worth up to $4.5MM, but much of that sum is tied to performance incentives, as Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets. He’s set to earn a base salary of $1.5MM with $1MM guaranteed, plus a $500K roster bonus in April and a $500K bonus if he’s on the 46-man roster for at least 12 games. He’ll also see a $2MM roster bonus paid out at a rate of $125K for every game he’s on the 46-man roster.
Chuck Pagano Not Interested In HC Jobs
Chuck Pagano had a largely successful run as the head coach of the Colts, but he’s not interested in taking that title again in his career, as ESPN.com’s Jeff Dickerson writes. The Bears’ new defensive coordinator says he’s excited for his fresh challenge and doesn’t anticipate wanting an HC job after the 2019 season. 
“I’m not. I’ve done it,” Pagano at his introductory presser. “I’m motivated to just help coach Matt Nagy be successful. Help this organization be successful. Help these kids grow and develop. That’s my motivation is to be the best I can be for this organization, for the McCaskey family, for Coach Nagy and for these players and for these coaches and help develop these guys. That’s the only thing I want to do.”
The Bears hired Pagano earlier this month to replace Vic Fangio after he left to become head coach of the Broncos. It’s unquestionably a great opportunity for Pagano as he’ll be handed the keys to one of the league’s most talented defenses. He’ll have a great deal of freedom and creative control too as head coach Matt Nagy puts the bulk of his focus on the offense.
“Our vision for this defense is to be the best,” Pagano said. “Can we be the best in the history of the game? The pieces are there, and they will continue to add pieces. Can we continue to be better than we were last year? Absolutely. It’s going to be very, very difficult and a huge challenge, but one we will be up for.”
For what it’s worth, Pagano interviewed with the Broncos and Packers for their HC openings in this past cycle, so a change of heart may not be out of the question.
Dolphins Likely To Hire Pats’ Chad O’Shea
The Dolphins are set to hire Brian Flores as their next head coach and Flores is bringing some friends with him to South Beach. The ‘Fins are expected to hire Patriots wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea as their new offensive coordinator, according to Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel.
Flores can’t be formally hired until after the Super Bowl, but his staff is already taking shape. He’s reportedly tapped former Colts and Lions coach Jim Caldwell as his assistant HC and former Packers linebackers coach Patrick Graham will be his defensive coordinator.
Flores and O’Shea have been working together since 2009 and, as Kelly notes, O’Shea is regarded as an up-and-coming offensive mind. Last year, O’Shea was believed to be a top OC candidate for Josh McDaniels‘ staff in Indianapolis, but he stayed in New England when McDaniels elected to do the same.
Last year, McDaniels was effusive in his praise of O’Shea.
“Chad’s unbelievable,” McDaniels told Mark Daniels of the Milford Daily News. “He’s incredibly responsible for any and all of our success in the red zone. He does a lot of that work and prepares us well for that situation in the game.“
Latest On Ravens’ Eric Weddle
Recently, Eric Weddle indicated that it’s Ravens-or-bust for him in 2019. Now, he says that’s not necessarily the case. 
“I want to finish out [my contract],” Weddle told the Ravens’ team website (Twitter link). “But obviously, decisions have to be made for the future of the team, the organization. They got to do what’s best for them, and I respect that. … [We’ll] see if there’s something to be worked out. If not, then I’ve had an unbelievable experience here and loved every second. So if it does happen, we both move on and then … we’ll see if I’ll play somewhere else or hang ’em up.”
For now, Weddle is set to return at a cap figure of $9.25MM, which puts his Baltimore future in flux. Should the Ravens release him, they’ll save $7.5MM versus just $1.75MM in dead money.
Weddle earned a fifth-career Pro Bowl selection this season, but his age (34) will work against him. There’s also the depressed market for free agent safeties to consider. Last year, safeties with starting experience such as Eric Reid, Kenny Vaccaro, and Tre Boston wound up as afterthoughts. Standout Tyrann Mathieu found a home with the Texans in March, but even he had to settle for a one-year, $7MM deal.
Weddle’s willingness to play elsewhere may help his leverage with the Ravens, but it’s still far from certain that he’ll be retained at his current rate or anything close to it. No matter what, Weddle says he’s excited to return for yet another season.
“Who knows what the future holds?” he said. “But I live it up each day and whatever is going to happen is going to be meant to happen for myself and my family, and I’m excited for the future, for sure.”
Falcons’ Owner On Quinn, Dimitroff
The Falcons have head coach Dan Quinn and GM Thomas Dimitroff under contract through 2022. Their deals would indicate that their fates are tied together, but he says they are not necessarily linked if the 2019 season goes poorly. 
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“I don’t know that. That’s a whole year away,” Blank said (via Jeff Schultz of The Athletic). “They’re two different people with two different roles. I understand the question, and I understand the answer you would like. But the answer I’m giving is the honest answer, which is that we have a year for things to play out.”
Blank went on to say that he has a “very high confidence level” in their ability to turn things around, but it sounds like any outcome is possible if the Falcons fail to make the playoffs yet again. Atlanta finished out 7-9 in 2018 despite a talented roster and high expectations heading into the season.
Of course, the duo has found success together. The Falcons reached, and nearly won, Super Bowl LI against the Patriots following the 2016 season. In 2017, they secured a Wild Card spot with a 10-6 record before falling to the Eagles in the divisional round.
“They’re tied at the hip in a positive way in terms of their decision-making,” he said. “I’ve seen them disagree on things in a respectful way. They definitely have different views on some things, but we encourage that as part of our culture in all of our businesses. Usually, if they disagree on something, they move on and try to find an option they both feel better about.”
Jets Officially Hire Dowell Loggains
It’s a done deal. On Wednesday, the Jets formally announced Dowell Loggains as their new offensive coordinator. Loggains will also serve as New York’s quarterbacks coach.
Loggains, a longtime friend and co-worker of Adam Gase, was said to be in the lead for the OC job right after Gase shook hands on his new job with the Jets. Gase is expected to be the offensive play-caller for the Jets, but he’ll likely lean on Loggains for support as they look to get the most out of young quarterback Sam Darnold. In addition to serving as the OC, Loggains will also carry the title of quarterbacks coach.
Gase was Chicago’s offensive coordinator in 2015 when Loggains became the club’s quarterbacks coach. Together, the two men got a tremendous season out of Jay Cutler in which he threw for 21 touchdowns against a career-low eleven interceptions. Loggains took over the OC post when Gase left for Miami, but the two reunited in South Beach last year. Now, they’re together again in New Jersey.
Broncos Release Andre Holmes
The Broncos have released wide receiver Andre Holmes, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates (on Twitter). The veteran was acquired late in the season via waivers from Buffalo, but his time with Denver is through. 
Claimed off waivers just after Emmanuel Sanders tore one of his Achilles’ tendons, Holmes caught one pass during his Broncos tenure. The wide receiver was under contract through 2019, but his deal had no additional guaranteed money left for next season.
Prior to being released by the Bills in early December, Holmes had 12 catches for 157 yards on the season. Even though he had history with then-offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave, he didn’t do a whole lot with the Broncos. After catching his lone target for five yards, Holmes wound up on IR to close out the year.
Holmes’ best ball came in Oakland, including a 2014 season in which he caught 47 passes for 693 yards and four touchdowns. Since then, he’s been much more of a role player and has not amassed more than 14 grabs in a season.
Jaguars, Calais Campbell To Discuss Deal
Thanks to his four-year, $60MM deal signed in 2017, Calais Campbell is set to carry a hefty cap number in 2019. The Jaguars probably want to tamp that number down one way or another and Campbell is open to suggestions. 
“I think it’s more with restructuring with an extension,″ Campbell said (via John Reid of the Florida-Times Union). ″That’s the only way to do it and that’s something that was talked about that could possibly happen.″
Right now, Campbell is set to carry a $14.5MM cap figure in 2019. If the Jaguars can smooth out that hit, they can use some of those funds to address other holes, such as the quarterback position. The Jags have been widely connected to Nick Foles, for example, and he won’t come cheap as several other teams are also in the hunt for QB options in a thin market.
Even with a projected cap increase of 6%, the Jaguars presently have just $3.57MM in cap space. Something has to give, and adjusting Campbell’s contract could go a long way towards giving the team some much needed flexibility.
Campbell crushed it in Year One of his contract as he set a franchise record with 14.5 sacks. Last year, he led the team with 10.5 QB takedowns.
Dolphins, Brian Flores To Meet Again
Patriots assistant Brian Flores will have his second interview with the Dolphins on Wednesday night, a league source tells Adam Beasley of the Miami Herald (on Twitter). The interview, in all likelihood, will be a discussion about the future rather than a true interview. Flores has already been tapped as the team’s next head coach, but the hire cannot be formally made until after the Super Bowl. 
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In 2018, the Patriots ranked 21st in yards allowed but seventh in scoring. The Pats have only had one non-top-10 scoring defense in the past 13 seasons and Flores has been a part of their past eight defensive coaching staffs. After moving on from the offensively-minded Adam Gase, the Dolphins believe that Flores will help restore order on the other side of the ball.
Speaking of defense, the Dolphins are reportedly set to hire longtime Flores friend Patrick Graham as their new DC.