Jaguars Sign 13 UDFAs
The Jaguars have signed the following 13 undrafted free agents:
- OL Tony Adams (N.C. State)
- CB Dee Delaney (Miami, Fla.)
- CB Tre Herndon (Vanderbilt)
- DT Michael Hughes (UNLV)
- LB Reggie Hunter (North Carolina Central)
- LB Darius Jackson (Jacksonville State)
- DE Lyndon Johnson (Cincinnati)
- WR Allen Lazard (Iowa State)
- OT K.C. McDermott (Miami, Fla.)
- CB Quenton Meeks (Stanford)
- WR Dorren Miller (Carson-Newman)
- LB Andrew Motuapuaka (Virginia Tech)
- S C.J. Reavis (Marshall)
Meeks skipped his senior season at Stanford with the belief that he would be a Day 3 draft pick. That call never came, so he’ll have to scrap for his opportunity to make the Jaguars’ final cut. Lazard also seemed to have a decent chance at getting drafted after setting Iowa State records with 231 passes and 3,218 yards over the course of his collegiate career.
The Jaguars now have have one open spot on their 89-man roster after releasing wide receiver Jaelen Strong and punter Brad Nortman.
Jaguars Release WR Jaelen Strong
The Jaguars have released wide receiver Jaelen Strong. It’s an unfortunate development for the 24-year-old as he recovers from a torn ACL. 
[RELATED: Jaguars Sign 13 UDFAs]
Strong spent his first two seasons in the NFL with the Texans, who selected him in the third round of the 2015 draft. He was cut by Houston in September and landed with the Jaguars as a depth signing. He was activated for the first time in December in the wake of injuries to starters Marqise Lee and Allen Hurns and responded by catching a touchdown pass in the first half. Unfortunately, he went down with a season-ending ACL tear in his left knee in the game.
Strong is still rehabbing from surgery, but he figures to be a popular target for teams once he’s able to get back on the practice field.
Panthers Sign Seven UDFAs
The Panthers have announced the signing of seven undrafted free agents:
- Kyle Allen, QB (Houston)
- Reggie Bonnafon, RB (Louisville)
- Brendan Mahon, G (Penn State)
- Taylor Hearn, G (Clemson)
- Kyle Bosch, G (West Virginia)
- Chris Frey, LB (Michigan State)
- Tracy Sprinkle, DT (Ohio State)
Allen, a 6’3″ signal caller, began his collegiate career at Texas A&M before transferring to the University of Houston. Things didn’t go as planned with the Cougars, however, as he lost his starting job once again. In January, Allen decided to skip his senior season in order to go pro. All in all, Allen left the NCAA with a 61.7% completion percentage and 37 touchdowns against 18 interceptions.
Allen may have an opportunity to make the final cut with the Panthers as Garrett Gilbert and Taylor Heinicke are the only other QBs presently under contract behind Cam Newton. If veteran Derek Anderson is retained, however, that bunch will be competing for just one potential spot on the 53-man roster.
Vikings Re-Sign CB Terence Newman
Terence Newman is back for another season. The Vikings announced that the veteran cornerback has re-signed with the team.
[RELATED: Vikings Pick Up Trae Waynes’ Option]
This year will mark Newman’s 16th season in the NFL. Even though he’ll turn 40 in September, the Vikings believe that he can provide valuable veteran leadership in the locker room and quality play in limited spurts on the field. He’ll mentor first-round cornerback Mike Hughes while he offers support in nickel packages behind starters Xavier Rhodes and Trae Waynes.
Last year, Newman appeared in all 16 of the Vikings’ regular season games as well as their two playoff contests. In the regular season, he tallied 35 tackles and five passes defensed as he played on 555 snaps, the third-highest total of any Vikings corner.
Pro Football Focus ranked Newman as 66th-best cornerback in the NFL, which indicates that he is still a quality contributor, even though he is no longer among the league’s best. Interestingly, the advanced metrics showed that Newman turned in one of his best seasons ever in 2016 – his age-38 season.
In the wake of James Harrison‘s retirement, Newman now stands as the oldest defensive player in the NFL. He also boasts the highest number of interceptions amongst all active players with 42.
Bucs Sign 14 Undrafted Free Agents
The Buccaneers have completed “Round 8” of the NFL Draft. On Monday, the team announced the signings of 14 undrafted free agents:
- Austin Allen, QB Arkansas
- Sergio Bailey, WR Eastern Michigan
- Cole Boozer, OL Temple
- Donnie Ernsberger, TE Western Michigan
- Demone Harris, DE Buffalo
- Tanner Hudson, TE Southern Arkansas
- Godwin Igwebuike, S Northwestern
- Josh Liddell, S Arkansas
- Trevor Moore, K North Texas
- Evan Perrizo, DE Minnesota State
- Erv Philips, WR Syracuse
- Jason Reese, TE Missouri
- Antonio Simmons, DE Georgia Tech
- Shaun Wilson, RB Duke
The Buccaneers have a history of finding talent from the UDFA ranks. Running back Peyton Barber, tight end Cameron Brate, and wide receiver Adam Humphries – some of the most important players in the Bucs’ offense – entered the league as UDFAs.
Igwebuike, Ernsberger and Boozer were the “high-priority” signings in this group, according to the team website. They’ll still face an uphill battle as they look to make the final 53-man cut in the fall.
Bills To Wait On Kelvin Benjamin Extension
Kelvin Benjamin is entering his contract year, but he won’t get a new contract right away. The Bills plan to wait a bit before getting into extension talks with the wide receiver, GM Brandon Beane tells WGR (Twitter link). 
Benjamin, 27, came to the Bills in a buzzer-beating trade deadline deal with the Panthers last year. Although Beane is plenty familiar with Benjamin thanks to their time together in Carolina, he wants to see how the wide receiver gels with offensive coordinator Brian Daboll and quarterbacks A.J. McCarron and Josh Allen before discussing a long-term pact.
For now, Benjamin remains under contract for 2018 for $8.45MM, per the terms of his fifth-year option. He figures to be the top receiving target in the offense as he is joined by second-year pro Zay Jones and veterans Andre Holmes and Jeremy Kerley on the WR depth chart.
In eight games for the Panthers last year, Benjamin totaled 32 grabs for 475 yards and two touchdowns, numbers that were roughly in line with his previous work. However, he had just 16 catches for 217 yards and one score in six contests for Buffalo.
Texans Pick Up Kevin Johnson’s Option
The Texans picked up the fifth year option on cornerback Kevin Johnson, according to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). As a cornerback selected between No. 11 and No. 32, Johnson is slated to earn a salary of $9.069MM for the 2019 season. 
[RELATED: PFR’s Fifth-Year Option Tracker]
The option decisions on some players in the 2015 draft were simple. The Bucs did not have to deliberate over Jameis Winston‘s option and the Titans did not have to think twice about adding another year to Marcus Mariota‘s deal. The call on Johnson, however, was not so easy.
Johnson missed ten games in 2016 thanks to a broken foot and lost another four games last year thanks to an MCL sprain. Johnson had a career-high 45 total tackles last year, but he has just one interception over three NFL seasons. Last year, PFF had him ranked as the worst cornerback in the NFL out of 121 qualified players.
Obviously, the Texans still believe in the former 16th overall pick. For now, he seems unlikely to start with Kareem Jackson, Aaron Colvin, and Johnathan Joseph ahead of him on the depth chart.
Latest On Cowboys’ Jason Witten
Jason Witten is said to be deciding between a career in broadcasting and another season with the Cowboys, but it might be an easy call. ESPN is offering the tight end $4-$4.5MM to join the Monday Night Football booth, David Moore of the Dallas Morning News reports. 
Witten’s deal with the Cowboys, meanwhile, would pay him a base salary of $1.05MM for 2018 with up to $750K in per-game roster bonuses. However, as Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (on Twitter) notes, Witten has yet to receive his $4.7MM signing bonus, so he’s really deciding between $6.5MM from the Cowboys or $4-4.5MM from ESPN.
Still, if owner Jerry Jones is intent on keeping Witten, he may have to sweeten the deal to some extent. Meanwhile, another network has also entered the fray with what is said to be an “interesting” proposal.
The Cowboys drafted a tight end this weekend, but not necessarily one that can replace Witten. Fourth-round pick Dalton Schultz projects to take over James Hanna‘s role as a run blocker, so the Cowboys still have an obvious need for a tight end who can contribute as a receiver. Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones says the team can get by with a group that includes Geoff Swaim, Blake Jarwin, and Rico Gathers, but I would fully expect them to pursue outside options if Witten retires.
Browns Exercise Damarious Randall’s Option
The Browns have exercised the fifth-year option for defensive back Damarious Randall, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Browns acquired Randall from the Packers via trade earlier this offseason. 
[RELATED: 2019 Fifth-Year Option Decision Tracker]
The fifth-year option is guaranteed for injury only, so the Browns will have the option to bail for any non-health reason. Assuming he remains with the club through 2019, Randall will earn $9.069MM, as shown on PFR’s fifth-year option tracker.
A first-round selection (No. 30 overall) in 2015, Randall appeared in 39 games with 30 starts for the Packers. In that time, he amassed ten interceptions, including four in 2017, one of which was taken to the house for a pick six.
Randall placed as the 81st ranked corner in the NFL last year, per Pro Football Focus, but GM John Dorsey isn’t overly concerned with analytics. This year, the Browns will convert Randall from cornerback to free safety as fellow newcomers T.J. Carrie and Denzel Ward start on the outside.
Redskins Release DL A.J. Francis
The Redskins are cleaning house on the defensive line. The team has informed defensive tackle/end A.J. Francis of his release, according to JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington (on Twitter). 
[RELATED: Redskins Cut Terrell McClain]
News of Francis’ release came moments after it was learned that defensive lineman Terrell McClain has been cut. The Redskins’ new-look defensive tackle group will be headlined by first-round pick Da’Ron Payne and will likely include fifth-round choice Tim Settle.
Francis has bounced around the NFL since entering the league in 2014, including stints with the Dolphins and Seahawks. Last year, he appeared in six contests for the ‘Skins and totaled 18 tackles.