Seahawks Sign LB Shaquem Griffin
The Seahawks have officially signed fifth-round linebacker Shaquem Griffin and fifth-round defensive back Tre Flowers. With those moves, only defensive end Rasheem Green remains unsigned, as shown on PFR’s tracker. 
Griffin was one of the most inspirational stories to come out of this year’s draft. The UCF product lost his left hand due to a rare condition but never gave up on his football dream. Last year, he was first-team all-American Athletic Conference as he notched 74 tackles (13.5 for loss), a team-high seven sacks, one interception, three pass breakups, and two forced fumbles. The Seahawks, who believe that he’ll make a fine weakside linebacker at the pro level, have paired him with his twin brother Shaquill Griffin, who plays cornerback for Seattle.
As shown on Roster Resource, the rookie linebacker projects to serve as the first outside linebacker off of the bench in support of starters Barkevious Mingo and K.J. Wright. Flowers, meanwhile, will move from safety to cornerback where he’ll fight for time in reserve alongside Dontae Johnson, Byron Maxwell, and others. Justin Coleman and Shaquill Griffin will be the team’s first-string corners.
To make room for the new additions, the Seahawks have waived defensive ends Marcell Frazier and Noble Nwachukwu. Seattle also confirmed the signings of wide receiver Keenan Reynolds and linebacker Dadi Nicolas, which were reported on Wednesday.
DeMarcus Lawrence Willing To Play On Tag
The Cowboys have until mid-July to hammer out a long-term extension with DeMarcus Lawrence. If not, he’ll play out the year on the one-year, $17.143MM franchise tag. Other players might worry about that lack of security, but that’s fine with the defensive end. 
“It really doesn’t matter,” Lawrence said this week (via Jon Machota of the Dallas News). “If I do my thing, I put up my stats and I help my team win, they ain’t got no choice but to sign me. That’s how I feel.”
Lawrence, who turned 26 this spring, had 14.5 sacks in 2017. That total was the most by a Cowboys player since another DeMarcus – DeMarcus Ware – had 19 in 2011. The Cowboys also notched 38 sacks as a team, giving them their highest total overall since ’11.
Lawrence was a big reason for the Cowboys’ success against opposing quarterbacks and they ideally would like to keep him in the long term. However, agent David Canter is believed to be seeking a deal that will at least match that of fellow client Olivier Vernon. In 2016, Vernon signed the largest deal in NFL history for a defensive end when he inked a five-year, $85MM deal with the Giants.
The advanced metrics also underscored Lawrence’s dominance in 2017. Last year, he graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 3 ranked edge rusher, putting him behind only Cameron Jordan and Von Miller.
As shown on Roster Resource, the Cowboys project to start Lawrence and Tyrone Crawford at defensive end with Brian Price and Maliek Collins in the middle. Defensive ends David Irving, 2017 first-round pick Taco Charlton, and free agent addition Kony Ealy are also ticketed for significant playing time at DE and that group could be strengthened even further if Randy Gregory is cleared to play in 2018.
Matt Moore May Wait To Sign
Free agent quarterback Matt Moore is willing to wait for the right deal. The former Dolphins signal caller had conversations with the Chiefs and Texans earlier this offseason, but is now considering waiting until after the season begins to sign anywhere, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. 
Moore, 34 in August, may survey the QB landscape to see which team needs help. That probably means that Moore is waiting to see if another quarterback gets injured in camp, giving him an opportunity to jump on board and stick on a roster.
It’s not clear whether the Dolphins had much interest in re-signing Moore this year, but he apparently felt betrayed by the team last year when they signed Jay Cutler to replace Ryan Tannehill after his injury. In January, Moore resolved to sign elsewhere. Since then, the Dolphins have added Brock Osweiler and Bryce Petty to the mix. David Fales is also under contract and pushing to make the final cut.
The Chiefs’ interest in Moore was previously reported, but word of the Texans’ inquiry is new. However, after Houston signed Brandon Weeden and Joe Webb in free agency in the spring and claimed Stephen Morris off of waivers earlier this month, there’s no longer a clear fit for Moore.
Moore appeared in four games last year, including two starts. He completed 61.4% of his throws with four touchdowns against five interceptions. The veteran has 30 career starts on his resume, but all but five of those came between 2007-2011.
AFC East Notes: Pats, Solder, Dolphins, Jets
Last month, the Patriots drafted Georgia tackle Isaiah Wynn in the first round to help replace Nate Solder. Former Patriots lineman Matt Light believes filling the void will be a tall task.
“As far as fans, and how they view this season with respect to the loss to a guy like Nate, Nate’s not a guy you can just replace. No. 1, because he’s a ridiculously large mammal,” Light said of the 6’8″, 325-pound Solder, who is now with the Giants (via ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss). “From the first time I met him, I thought, ‘Man, this just shouldn’t be right that big guys like this are designed the way they are.’ No fat. Runs like a deer. Got the reach and wingspan of a vulture. The guy is just unbelievably talented in so many ways, and he’s smart, a cerebral player. You don’t replace a guy like that overnight.”
In addition to Wynn, the Patriots also have veteran Trent Brown after their trade with the Niners as well as veterans LaAdrian Waddle and Matt Tobin to try at left tackle. Marcus Cannon remains with the squad, but offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia says he’ll continue to man the right side. Those four players have their work cut out for them, but Light feels that they might be able to do an adequate job.
“Its been done before. They survived me going through that first year of being lost in so many ways and trying to figure out things on the run,” said Light. “I would say this, for all the fans out there, it’s been documented but I’m not sure it’s been appreciated as it should be, but the work Dante does and the work he puts into the offseason — and the work he puts into the young guys that are coming into the organization and how he motivates those guys and pushes them to be in the best position possible to play the game — I’ve got a lot of confidence in his ability to prepare the guys he thinks are the best to take the field….Definitely something to watch, but I feel as those guys will be ready to roll and be prepared.”
Here’s more from the AFC East:
- Next week marks a big milestone for Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill, as Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald writes. Dolphins doctors, coaches and the QB will meet soon to decide how much work the quarterback will do during OTA sessions that begin on Tuesday and run into mid-June. The expectation is Tannehill, who missed the last month of the 2016 season with a partially ACL tear and all of last season with a complete tear, will be able to participate with little or no limitations, sources tell Salguero. But, even if doctors give him the go-ahead, coaches could still opt to take it easy with Tannehill in an effort to keep him healthy and get extra reps for backups Brock Osweiler and David Fales.
- After the draft, there was some speculation that the Jets were hoping to land Baker Mayfield at No. 3 overall rather than Sam Darnold. A detailed look at the Jets’ path to Darnold by Albert Breer of The MMQB paints a different picture. After watching Darnold throw in April, Jets VP of player personnel Brian Heimerdinger told boss Mike Maccagnan “If he’s there [at 3], take him.” On draft night, Maccagnan was in disbelief when Mayfield went No. 1 to the Browns and the Giants selected running back Saquon Barkley at No. 2, allowing the Jets to select Darnold. Early on in the draft process, few would have guessed that Darnold would be available at No. 3, and the Jets feel lucky to have him. On draft night, Heimerdinger turned to Maccagnan and said, “You have a horseshoe up your ass.”
Reuben Foster’s Accuser Says She Lied
Reuben Foster’s accuser recanted her claims in court on Thursday, as Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group tweets. The ex-girlfriend of the 49ers linebacker says he did not hit her once and adds that she actually struck him. 
“I was threatening Reuben. … that I was going to [expletive] up his career,” Foster’s ex-girlfriend Elissa Ennis said.
When asked about why she dialed 911 three times, she responded, “I wanted to be extra. I wanted him to go down. I was pissed.” She went on to explain that she falsified claims about Foster as a part of “a money scheme.”
“It was all a money scheme. I didn’t want to get this far in the news. It was about money,” said Ennis on the stand.
After Foster’s arrest in February, Ennis says she bolted home for Louisiana and took Foster’s money and jewelry with her. Ennis’ injuries from around that same time were submitted as a part of the prosecution’s case against Foster, but she now says those were caused by a fight with another woman or two women in a road rage incident in San Francisco (Twitter link via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area). A portion of the road rage fight was posted on Instagram, but has since been flagged and deleted.
Recently, 49ers GM John Lynch said that Foster would be released if it was found that he struck Ennis. However, if Foster is cleared of the charges without conclusive evidence of abuse, he’ll remain in SF. Right now, the odds of a conviction are looking slim.
“We do feel like patience is the right approach right now, that we are going to learn things through this legal process,” Lynch said. “But I do want to be very clear, abundantly clear, that if these charges are proven true, that if Reuben did indeed hit this young lady, he won’t be part of our organization going forward.”
Bills To Meet With Russell Shepard
The Bills are scheduled to host wide receiver Russell Shepard on a visit this week, according to Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News (on Twitter). Shepard was released by the Panthers on Monday, making him a free agent. 
The Bills have made a habit of targeting ex-Panthers players under the guidance of head coach Sean McDermott (former Panthers defensive coordinator) and GM Brandon Beane (former Panthers executive). Since McDermott came on board in 2017, the Panthers have brought in wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin, running back Mike Tolbert, quarterback Joe Webb, defensive tackle Star Lotulelei, and cornerback Leonard Johnson (Webb is no longer with the team and Tolbert and Johnson remain in free agent limbo).
Beane was with the Panthers in March of 2017 when they inked Shepard to a three-year free agent contract. Two months later, he agreed to follow McDermott to Buffalo.
Shepard appeared in 15 games for the Panthers last year but didn’t quite live up to expectations. He finished out with 17 catches for 202 yards and one touchdown. This week, the Panthers cut ties with him in order to save $2MM+ against the cap.
Before signing with Carolina, Shepard had 23 catches for 341 yards and two touchdowns in his final year with the Bucs.
Packers Sign CB Josh Jackson
The Packers have signed second-round cornerback Joshua Jackson, per a team announcement. The team has now inked ten of its eleven draft picks with third-round linebacker Oren Burks as the last remaining unsigned selection. 
Jackson was widely projected to be a mid-to-late first round pick heading into the draft. Fortunately for the Packers, the Big Ten defensive back of the year slipped to the middle of the second round, where they were about to pounce on him at No. 45.
The Iowa cornerback positioned himself as one of the best cornerbacks in this year’s draft with a breakout 2017 season. Jackson made a play on one out of every four targets in his direction and allowed zero touchdowns after Week 4 of the season. He finished out with eight interceptions, including three picks against Ohio State and two pick-sixes against Wisconsin. Jackson clearly thrives in pressure situations, though it’s possible that some teams cooled on him due to this being his only real big year in college.
The Packers project to start first-round cornerback Jaire Alexander and free agent addition Tramon Williams at cornerback. Jackson figures to be in the rotation behind them, along with veteran Davon House and second-year corner Kevin King.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/16/18
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: DE Patrick Afriyie, WR Justice Liggins, WR Nelson Spruce
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: RB Nick Holley, S Afolabi Laguda, TE Codey McElroy, S Steven Parker, LB Brian Womac
- Waived/injured: LB Carlos Thompson
Minnesota Vikings
- Waived: DT Dylan Bradley
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: LB KeShun Freeman, WR Eldridge Massington, FB Ryan Yurachek
- Released: LB Michael Mauti
- Waived from injured reserve: T John Theus
Philadelphia Eagles
- Waived: CB Jordan Thomas
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: WR Nick Williams
Seahawks To Sign Keenan Reynolds
The Seahawks are signing former Navy wide receiver/return man Keenan Reynolds, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Reynolds was selected in the sixth-round of the 2016 draft by the Ravens, but has yet to see the field in a regular season game. 
The Ravens kept Reynolds on the practice squad for much of the 2016 season but released him prior to the final cuts last year. In November, he hooked on with the Redskins’ taxi squad but was not retained with a futures contract.
Reynolds was a standout quarterback at Navy, but NFL clubs have viewed him as a wide receiver/kick returner in the past. Presumably, that’s how the Seahawks intend on using him if he makes the squad.
Reynolds finished fifth in Heisman voting in 2015 as he ran for 1,373 yards. Reynolds cleared 1,100 yards rushing in three of his collegiate seasons and averaged 4.7 yards per tote across four years. As a senior, he averaged 5.2 yards per carry.
The emergence of Reynolds prompted the Department of Defense to change its rules regarding the eligibility of its graduates in professional sports. However, the academies reverted back to the old rules in 2017.
Draft Signings: Patriots, Ravens, Raiders
Here’s a look at today’s non-first round draft signings:
- The Patriots signed second-round cornerback Duke Dawson. The Pats moved around quite a bit on draft weekend, including a trade up fro No. 63 to No. 56 to select Dawson. As shown on Roster Resource, the Florida product figures to be one of the team’s primary backups to starters Jonathan Jones and Stephon Gilmore, along with veteran Jason McCourty. Dawson’s deal is worth $4.7MM over four years, as dictated by his draft slot.
- The Ravens signed third-round tackle Orlando Brown. Per the terms of his slot, Brown will receive a four-year, $3.491MM deal. Tight end Mark Andrews, who was Brown’s teammate at Oklahoma and also selected in the third round, has also inked his deal. As of this writing, the Ravens have just two unsigned picks in first round selections Hayden Hurst and Lamar Jackson.
- The Raiders signed two draft picks today: Michigan defensive tackle Maurice Hurst (fifth round) and Oklahoma State wide receiver Marcell Ateman (seventh). Five of their nine picks now under contract, as shown on PFR’s tracker. From a talent perspective, Hurst was viewed as one of the top interior defensive linemen in the draft, but heart issues caused him to fall. The Michigan product will join fellow rookie Arden Key on the defensive line, giving the Raiders a double dose of young boom-or-bust talent.