Eagles Want To Extend CB Patrick Robinson
The Eagles are negotiating an extension with cornerback Patrick Robinson, a source tells NJ.com’s Matt Lombardo. Robinson is scheduled to reach free agency on March 14. 
The cash-strapped defending champs will do their best to keep the band together, but they are limited in what they can offer. The Eagles are already likely to lose tight end Trey Burton, who figures to garner the most lucrative contract of any free agent tight end this offseason.
Robinson, 31 in September, emerged as a locker room leader in 2017 and gave the team quality play at slot cornerback. Last year, Pro Football Focus ranked Robinson as the sixth-best cornerback in the NFL, putting him ahead of notables such as Stephon Gilmore, Darius Slay, A.J. Bouye, and Aqib Talib. Robinson also had four interceptions, matching a career-high.
While the Eagles’ signing of Alshon Jeffery drew headlines, Robinson proved to be an excellent one-year pickup in his own right. He earned just $1MM in 2017 but he should be poised for a significant pay bump in 2018, whether it comes from Philadelphia or another team.
Rams To Cut Or Trade Tavon Austin
The Rams will either trade or release wide receiver Tavon Austin before the start of the league year, a source tells Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). Given Austin’s lack of production to date, a release seems more likely. 
In 2013, GM Les Snead used the No. 8 overall pick to take Austin, a speedy wide receiver out of West Virginia. The selection was viewed as a reach at the time and his lack of consistent production made it clear to most that the Rams had erred with that pick. After catching 52 passes for 473 yards and five scores in 2015, the Rams inked Austin to a hefty four-year, $42MM extension which, at the time, made him the 12th-highest paid receiver in the NFL. Less than two years later, the Rams are bailing on that deal and probably eating money in order to break free.
Austin, 26, will earn a fully guaranteed $5MM roster bonus this year whether or not he’s on the Rams’ roster. By cutting him before March 16, the team gets to save $3MM against the cap. The good news for L.A. is that Austin’s contract contains offsets, meaning the Rams will save money if and when Austin lands a new contract. However, it’s hard to see Austin earning much more than the league minimum after the year he had in 2017.
The diminutive Austin had just 13 receptions for 47 yards in 2017. He played only 230 snaps in total. By most measures, 2016 was his best season to date as he had 58 catches for 509 yards and three touchdowns.
Patriots’ Nate Solder To Continue Playing
Despite some rumblings of retirement, pending free agent Nate Solder plans to continue playing football, sources tell Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald (on Twitter). Howe adds that the left tackle’s reps have yet to start negotiations with the Patriots, though there are still about two weeks to go before the start of free agency. 
There was some belief that Solder could walk away from the game after dealing with tremendous hardship in recent years. In 2014, Solder was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Fortunately, the cancer did not spread and doctors were able to remove the testicle. Then, in 2015, Solder’s son was diagnosed with kidney cancer at just three months ago. He is still undergoing chemotherapy.
Despite all of that, Solder has decided to continue playing. The 29-year-old (30 in April) rates as one of the very best free agent tackles in this year’s crop, along with Ja’Wuan James of the Dolphins. In 2017, he graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 32 ranked tackle. Last year, Solder was in the top 20 with another predominantly healthy season.
The Patriots have been the only team that Solder has known since being selected in the first round of the 2011 draft, but he could be lured away by an aggressive market in March. If the Pats are intent on keeping him, their best bet will be to get something done over the next 13 days.
Lions Won’t Tender WR T.J. Jones
The Lions don’t plan to tender restricted free agent T.J. Jones, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (on Twitter). However, it’s possible that the team will bring Jones back on a lesser deal. 
Jones, 26 in July, first joined the Lions as a sixth round pick in the 2014 draft. He had his best year to date in 2017, catching 30 passes for 399 yards and one touchdown.
The first round tender ($4.1MM+) and second round tender (~$2.9MM) are obviously too pricey for Jones, but it might have made sense to explore the original round tender ($2MM) for him. Per the terms of the original tender, if another team were to sign Jones away, the Lions would collect a sixth-round draft pick to match the round Jones was selected in. Apparently, the Lions are unwilling to commit $2MM to Jones, but they might bring him back for a lesser sum.
The Lions have roughly $27MM of cap space to work with, putting them roughly in the middle of the pack league-wide.
Falcons To Exercise Vic Beasley’s Option
The Falcons will exercise their fifth-year option on Vic Beasley, GM Thomas Dimitroff told reporters (Twitter link via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). The Falcons had until May to make the call, but they did not need the extra time to mull it over. 
The fifth-year option will keep Beasley under contract through the 2019 season. He’s already signed through the upcoming season at a $4.6MM cap number, the fourth year of his rookie contract. The figures for the fifth-year option are not yet known, but it will likely be in excess of $13MM.
The Falcons experimented with using Beasley as an outside linebacker in the past, but he’ll return to playing defensive end full time in 2018, according to head coach Dan Quinn. Despite his up-and-down campaign, his previous work and potential made the fifth-year option decision an easy call.
In 2016, Beasley led the league with 15.5 sacks, earning a Pro Bowl nod and a First Team All-Pro selection. Last year, he had just five sacks and his reassignment to linebacker resulted in a career-worst 55.6 overall score from Pro Football Focus.
The fifth-year option is guaranteed for injury only, so the Falcons will have an opportunity to change course if necessary.
Redskins, Broncos Discussing Cravens Trade
Su’a Cravens could be on the move. The Broncos and the Redskins are discussing a trade to send the safety to the Denver, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). No deal is done yet, but the Broncos are showing the most interest of any team and appear to be the most likely landing spot for the former second-round pick. 
Cravens decided late in the 2016 offseason to retire from football. The news caught the Redskins completely off guard as they were banking on Cravens to start at one of their safety spots. The youngster reversed his decision hours later, but the Redskins were still skeptical about his desire to continue playing. After a short stay on the NFI list, the Redskins parked him on the reserve/left squad list, barring him from playing in 2017.
The versatile defender was diagnosed with Post Concussion Syndrome, according to a statement released by his agent late last year, but he is now “asymptomatic and cleared to return back to all things football.”
The Broncos currently project to start some combination of Darian Stewart, Will Parks, and Justin Simmons at safety. Cravens could step in as a first-stringer while also contributing at outside linebacker. In his first season, the Redskins used Cravens at multiple positions, though they were planning on having him focus on safety in his sophomore campaign.
Redskins Exec: No Discussions About Cousins Tag
Maybe the Redskins aren’t giving serious thought to using the franchise tag on Kirk Cousins after all. Redskins senior vice president of player personnel Doug Williams told reporters on Wednesday that the team has not had a meeting about franchising the quarterback (Twitter links via NBC Sports Washington). 
Placing the franchise tag on Cousins would be crazy, reckless, and petty, which is exactly why folks in the football world have speculated that the Redskins could go through with it. Redskins president Bruce Allen reportedly spoke to rival executives about the possibility, but if Williams is to be believed, that move is no longer on the table.
If he is not tagged between now and the March 6 deadline, Cousins will enter free agency on March 14 as an unrestricted free agent. The legal tampering period kicks off on March 12, but Cousins’ plan is to take his time and likely not agree to terms with a club until things officially get underway. Cousins is expected to set a new watermark as the league’s highest-paid player, though he won’t hold that title for long with Matt Ryan, Aaron Rodgers, and other QBs in line for lucrative extensions.
Latest On Johnny Manziel
Johnny Manziel is getting ready to suit up in the Spring League, but his focus remains on an NFL comeback. With that in mind, Manziel’s camp has informed teams that he is willing to sign a minimum salary deal with no guaranteed money and would even be willing to accept a practice squad contract in order to prove that he belongs in the league (Twitter link via Mike Garafolo of NFL.com). 
Garafolo seems optimistic about Manziel’s chances of landing a practice squad deal, but it stands to reason that many teams will be against giving Manziel another opportunity given his history of substance abuse and partying. For what it’s worth, Manziel says that he has worked on his issues and has re-dedicated himself to football.
“I was self medicating with alcohol because that’s what I thought was making me happy to help me get out of that depression to a point where I felt like I had some sense of happiness,” Manziel said recently. “But at the end of the day, when you wake up the next day after a night like that or after going on a trip like that, and you wake up the next day and that’s all gone.”
Manziel, 25, has not played in the NFL since the 2015 campaign. Although he showed flashes of impressive play, his stat line of seven touchdowns against seven picks with a 57% completion rate leaves much to be desired.
Colts To Move On From Frank Gore
Frank Gore wants to continue playing in 2018. However, it will not be with the Colts. Colts GM Chris Ballard had a conversation with Gore and told him that they are planning on going in a different direction in order to get younger at the running back position, according to coach Frank Reich (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Mike Wells). 
Gore will turn 35 in May, which is well past the expiration date for most running backs. However, he was still reasonably productive last year, running for 961 yards with three touchdowns plus 29 catches for 245 receiving yards. Gore has rushed for more than 1,000 yards in all but four of his NFL seasons and topped 1,000 all-purpose yards in every campaign but his rookie year.
Here’s the bad news: Gore’s yards per carry average has dipped as of late and he has not had more than 4.0 yards per tote since he left San Francisco after the 2014 season. In 2017, Gore matched a career worst with 3.7 yards per attempt.
It’s hard to see Gore getting a shot as a Week 1 starter, but teams will reach out with the idea of having him on the lower end of a timeshare. Chris Ivory, who is coming off of a rough couple of years in Jacksonville, is already picking up interest, so that’s a good indicator that Gore’s phone will be ringing in March.
Rob Gronkowski Expected To Return
After pondering retirement, Rob Gronkowski is expected to continue playing in the NFL, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) reports. Agent Drew Rosenhaus declined to comment on the tight end’s status, but the belief is that he’ll be back with the Patriots in 2018. 
Rumors have been swirling about Gronkowski’s future for quite some time, particularly after he suffered a concussion during the AFC Championship game. The tight end has pondered a future in movies and even the WWE, but he’ll put acting and wrasslin’ on hold for the time being.
The lovable Gronk has caught 76 touchdowns through eight seasons in the NFL. This past season, he turned in another productive campaign with 69 grabs for 1,084 yards and eight touchdowns.
After the Super Bowl, Patriots coach Bill Belichick did his best to quell talk of Gronkowski moving on to something else.
“At the end of every season, every person goes through somewhat of a process at the end of the season and then the following season,” Belichick said. “I think everyone that is involved in a NFL season, you get pretty drained especially after a season like this. [You] go through the end of the year process. The following year is the following year. It’s the same for everybody. I certainly can’t speak for anybody else…You’d have to ask any individual for every situation, but I would say five minutes after the game, or the day after the game is not really the time to make those decisions.”