Jaguars Open Up QB Competition
The Jaguars now have an open quarterback competition. After a dismal showing from Blake Bortles on Thursday night, head coach Doug Marrone says the starting job is up for grabs. 
“It’s this simple: I’m looking for the best person to lead this offense,” Marrone said (Twitter link via John Oehser of the team’s website). “[The QB position] is right up there for grabs, and either person can take it…It’s not like [Bortles] is not the quarterback. He’s got to go earn it.”
The Jaguars exercised Bortles’ fifth-year option for 2018, but that season is guaranteed for injury only. If the Jaguars see Chad Henne as the superior signal caller right now, then the former No.3 overall pick might not be long for Jacksonville. As Mike Florio of PFT recently suggested, the Jaguars may want to consider benching Bortles for the entire season so that they do not risk him getting injured and collecting on $19MM+ when they don’t want him. It would be an extreme measure, but it’s not unprecedented – the Redskins did the same thing with Robert Griffin III in 2015.
Bortles showed promise in 2015, when he threw for the second-most touchdowns in the NFL (35, one behind Tom Brady) and placed seventh in passing yards (4,428). However, after a down 2016 and a rocky summer, the Jaguars may wind up going in a different direction.
Steelers Want To Sign Stephon Tuitt To Extension Before Week 1
The Steelers are working to sign defensive end Stephon Tuitt to an extension before the start of the season, owner Art Rooney II said (Twitter link via Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). Tuitt made it clear back in June that his goal is to remain in Pittsburgh for the long haul.
“I would love it here,” he said. “It’s a blessing if they see me being here for the long term. I love the organization.”
Tuitt was a second-round pick in the 2014 draft, so the Steelers did not have the ability to retain him by way of a fifth-year option. As such, they’re currently at risk of losing the 24-year-old at season’s end. Tuitt’s departure would be a significant blow for the Steelers, who saw him burst on the scene as a full-time player over the previous two seasons. The ex-Notre Dame standout has started in all 28 appearances dating back to 2015, and he amassed 10.5 sacks during that period. Four of those sacks came last year for Tuitt, who graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 20 interior defender.
This year, Tuitt slated to make just $1.049MM. His next deal should give him a sizable pay bump, perhaps upward of $10MM per year.
Latest On Steelers RB Le’Veon Bell
Le’Veon Bell will report to the Steelers before the regular season starts, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. However, it’s still unclear exactly when Bell will report to the team. 
[RELATED: Rams’ Aaron Donald Could Miss Games]
If Bell were to miss games, he would be forfeiting the prorated portion of his $12.12MM salary for 2017. That would be a major gamble for Bell, whereas Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald can afford to hold the line since he’s only making $3.225MM. All along, the Steelers have expected that Bell would show up before Week 1.
“Really, a holdout does not benefit him in any way,’’ GM Kevin Colbert said recently. “So, again, I hope that he sees the benefits of being here and comes in here sooner than later.”
Prior to the franchise extension deadline, the Steelers offered Bell a five-year, $60MM deal with $30MM in the first two years of the contract and $42MM over the first three seasons. The pact would have reset the market at the running back position, but Bell presumably balked at the lack of true guarantees at signing.
The Steelers have the ability to franchise tag Bell again next offseason for roughly $14.5MM.
49ers Re-Sign Shayne Skov
The 49ers announced on Thursday that they have re-signed Shayne Skov. It’s a one-year deal for the linebacker.
[RELATED: Agent Says 49ers Wanted Tramaine Brock Back]
Skov spent the last three seasons with the Niners, but he was dropped from the roster in May as the team made way for a host of undrafted free agents. The 6’3″, 247-pound ‘backer has appeared in 24 games for SF with two tackles on defense and 12 tackles on special teams.
Skov has ties to the area as a San Francisco native and Stanford University product. At Stanford, he had 355 tackles, 40.5 tackles for loss, 17 sacks, five forced fumbles, and 13 passes defensed.
Skov will give the Niners another linebacker to evaluate in camp after they dropped injured LBs Donavin Newsom and Jayson DiManche.
Rams’ Aaron Donald Could Miss Games
Aaron Donald‘s holdout might not end anytime soon. The Rams defensive tackle could take his holdout into the regular season, league sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Facebook link). 
One of Schefter’s sources even speculated that he could envision Donald sitting out the entire season. That would be an extreme measure, of course, but it says a lot about where negotiations are at this point in time.
Recently, Rams GM Les Snead indicated that the team has made a substantial extension offer to Donald. Apparently, the proposal was not to Donald’s liking.
Donald, 26, is slated to earn $3.225MM in 2017 and $6.892MM in 2018 through the fifth-year option. Those numbers are way below market for the player who graded as the league’s No. 1 interior defender in 2016, per Pro Football Focus. Donald may be seeking a deal that tops Ndamukong Suh‘s six-year, $114MM pact, making him the league’s highest paid defensive tackle.
An extended holdout may give Donald the leverage he needs since he still has two years of club control remaining on his contract.
Seahawks Sign Justin Britt To Extension
The Seahawks and center Justin Britt have agreed to a three-year extension worth more than $9MM per year, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Britt, a second-round pick in the 2014 draft, was slated for free agency after the 2017 season. The team has confirmed the deal via press release. 
[RELATED: Seahawks Sign CB Tramaine Brock]
The new deal marks a significant pay bump for Britt, who will carry a cap number under $1.1MM this year. Britt’s extension won’t kick in until 2018, but the yearly average would tie him for third in the NFL with Alex Mack of the Falcons if it were starting immediately. Only Cowboys center Travis Frederick ($9.4MM) and Brandon Linder ($10.3MM) have higher AAVs. He’ll now be among the league’s highest-paid players at the position with the ability to cash in again at the age of 29.
Britt has been a starter for the Seahawks in each of his three seasons, but he has been moved around the offensive line quite a bit. He played mostly right tackle in 2014 and shifted to left guard in 2015 before settling in at center last year.
The 6’6″ lineman graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 11 center in the NFL last season, putting him ahead of notable names like Maurkice Pouncey, Max Unger, and Jason Kelce.
Giants’ J.T. Thomas Takes Pay Cut
J.T. Thomas‘ odds of making the Giants’ 53-man roster have improved. The linebacker accepted a major pay cut, taking his salary from $2.975MM to $775K in 2017, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The reworked deal includes a roster bonus of $20K plus a $400K bonus if he plays in 70% of the team’s snaps. 
The playing time bonus is hardly an automatic for Thomas. The 29-year-old suffered a season-ending knee injury in last year’s season opener and appeared in only 12 games in 2015, his debut season with the Giants.
When Thomas came to the Giants on a three-year, $10MM deal, he was signed to be the team’s starting weakside linebacker. This time around, he’s fighting to make the cut as a special teams player and backup linebacker. On the plus side, coach Ben McAdoo has expressed confidence in Thomas’ abilities.
“He’s working through individuals and we’ll have a plan to build him up as we go. We’re not going to rush into anything with him,” McAdoo said earlier this week. “He’s got a chance to build himself up, play some meaningful games as we go. There’s a pretty good chance he won’t play this next ball game, but he’ll have a chance to play here shortly.”
Thomas will now battle it out with Curtis Grant, Mark Herzlich, Calvin Munson, and Deontae Skinner for the final linebacker spots on the roster.
Colts C Ryan Kelly To Have Foot Surgery
Some injuries can be healed with Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation. Unfortunately, the R.I.C.E method did not work for Colts center Ryan Kelly. His broken foot will require surgery, coach Chuck Pagano told reporters on Thursday morning.
Kelly will likely be sidelined for 6-8 weeks, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. Given that timeframe, he’ll likely be placed on injured reserve and designated for return midseason, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
[RELATED: Colts Interested In Jeremy Zuttah]
Kelly was selected with the No. 18 overall pick in last year’s draft and went on to start in every game for the Colts last year. This season, he was being counted on to reprise that role.
The injury could motivate the Colts to turn to the free agent market. The Colts have been in talks with Jeremy Zuttah and they were working to line up a visit for this week. If Zuttah opts to return to Baltimore instead, the Colts could also consider free agent options like former Pro Bowler Nick Mangold.
For now, undrafted free agent addition Deyshawn Bond profiles as the team’s likely starter in Kelly’s absence. Adam Redmond, a 2016 UDFA, could also push for the job.
NFC West Notes: Rams, Watkins, Seahawks
Here’s a look at the NFC West:
- The Rams started discussing a Sammy Watkins trade with the Bills in the spring when they declined to exercise his fifth-year option in the spring, L.A. GM Les Snead told SiriusXM (Twitter link). The Watkins deal came completely out of left field, so it’s impressive that the two sides were able to keep rumblings of the deal out of the media for four months. The Rams acquired Watkins and a 2018 sixth-round selection in exchange for for cornerback E.J. Gaines and a 2018 second-round pick. Los Angeles has already expressed interest in inking him to an extension.
- Tramaine Brock‘s one-year deal with the Seahawks is for the minimum salary, Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times tweets. In the days leading up to his deal with Seattle, we heard that Brock had interest from as many as a dozen teams. Since Brock will only be making the minimum, it sounds either like the level of interest league-wide was overstated or Brock took less money from a quality team like the Seahawks in order to give himself a better platform for free agency next year.
- 49ers GM John Lynch says he has spoken with Broncos GM John Elway about which players might be available in trades (Twitter link via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area). Lynch offered no specifics, so we don’t know which players were discussed or how close the two sides were/are to a deal.
Rams Host Leodis McKelvin On Visit
The Rams are meeting with free agent cornerback Leodis McKelvin, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. He’ll chat with the team on Wednesday and work out for them on Thursday. 
[RELATED: Seahawks Sign Best Available CB]
Things have been quiet for McKelvin ever since being let go by the Eagles in February. He auditioned for the Saints late last week, but that was his first known workout of the offseason and he left New Orleans without a deal.
The Rams shook things up in a major way last week, acquiring Sammy Watkins in a surprising blockbuster trade with the Bills. Clearly, they are not shy about shaking up the roster here in August.
The Rams plan to use Trumaine Johnson and Wade Phillips favorite Kayvon Webster as the starting corners with Nickell Robey-Coleman as the slot specialist. McKelvin, if signed, could push Blake Countess and Michael Jordan for a spot on the 53-man roster. The team will be without Troy Hill for the first two games of the year thanks to his suspension for DUI.