Eric Weddle Weighing Four Teams’ Offers
Free agent safety Eric Weddle is weighing offers from four teams and will respond Monday, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Weddle’s evaluation of each team’s roster, city and schools will factor into his decision, per Rapoport, who adds (on Twitter) that he’ll whittle the four clubs down to two and move forward with negotiations.
Three of the teams chasing Weddle are the Ravens, Cowboys and Steelers, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). The other could be the Raiders, who were reportedly “zeroing in on” the 31-year-old as of Thursday.
Weddle has thus far spent his entire career with the Chargers, who selected him in the second round of the 2007 draft. The 
ex-Utah standout appeared in 137 of a possible 144 regular-season games in San Diego, making 122 starts, piling up three Pro Bowl nods, five All-Pro bids, and 19 interceptions.
Despite Weddle’s success in San Diego, his tenure there ended negatively last season, with the team reportedly informing Weddle that it was fining him $10K for remaining on the field during halftime of a game to watch his daughter perform in a dance ceremony. Weddle and agent David Canter didn’t go public about the fine at first, but the latter opened up after the Chargers placed the safety on IR in Week 17, a move that was made against his wishes. Further, the Bolts notified Weddle that there would be no room for him to travel on the team plane to the regular-season finale in Denver, according to Canter.
Drama aside, Weddle had a productive swan song in San Diego – amassing 76 tackles and six passes defended in 13 games – and he said in February that his motivation was to join a contending team.
“In the next three or four years, are they going to be competitive, are they going to be division winners, are we going to have a chance at the Super Bowl?” Weddle asked hypothetically.
Of the clubs linked to Weddle, the Steelers are the only one coming off a postseason trip and are seemingly the closest to Super Bowl contention. The Cowboys and Ravens are just a season removed from their last playoff appearances, though, and both had terrible luck with injuries during the 2015-16 campaign. The Raiders are stuck in a 13-year playoff drought after going 7-9 last season, but they have an enviable core of young talent and have already added three big-ticket free agents this week in offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele, linebacker Bruce Irvin and cornerback Sean Smith.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Compensatory Picks For 2016 NFL Draft
The NFL has officially announced the 33 compensatory picks for the 2016 NFL draft. These picks are awarded to the teams that suffered the most significant free agent losses during the 2015 offseason. So, for instance, the Lions, who lost Ndamukong Suh, get the top compensatory pick this year.
The comp pick formula assigns picks who suffered the largest net losses, so teams that signed multiple free agents have a lesser chance of receiving picks. These selections can’t be traded.
Here’s the full breakdown, by round and by team:
By Round:
Round 3:
- Detroit Lions
- New England Patriots
- Seattle Seahawks
- Denver Broncos
Round 4:
- Green Bay Packers
- Baltimore Ravens
- San Francisco 49ers
- Baltimore Ravens
- Dallas Cowboys
- Denver Broncos
- Green Bay Packers
- Cleveland Browns
- Buffalo Bills
Round 5:
- Arizona Cardinals
- Seattle Seahawks
- Cleveland Browns
- Cleveland Browns
- San Francisco 49ers
- San Diego Chargers
Round 6:
- New England Patriots
- Baltimore Ravens
- Detroit Lions
- San Francisco 49ers
- Dallas Cowboys
- San Francisco 49ers
- New England Patriots
- Seattle Seahawks
- Dallas Cowboys
- Dallas Cowboys
- Buffalo Bills
- Denver Broncos
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- New England Patriots
By Team:
- Dallas Cowboys (4)
- New England Patriots (4)
- San Francisco 49ers (4)
- Baltimore Ravens (3)
- Cleveland Browns (3)
- Denver Broncos (3)
- Seattle Seahawks (3)
- Buffalo Bills (2)
- Detroit Lions (2)
- Green Bay Packers (2)
- Arizona Cardinals (1)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (1)
- San Diego Chargers (1)
Raiders Sign Kelechi Osemele
THURSDAY, 5:46pm: The Raiders announced (on Twitter) that it’s a done deal.
TUESDAY, 11:26am: Osemele will get a five-year deal that can be worth up to $60MM, according to Getlin (Twitter links). Getlin adds that the base value is $11.7MM per season, which works out to $58.5MM over five years.
9:58am: Osemele’s new contract will be worth more than $11MM annually and will make him one of the top five highest-paid offensive linemen in the NFL, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter)
9:12am: The Raiders are on track to sign one of the top offensive free agents on the market when the new league year begins on Wednesday, according to Rand Getlin of the NFL Network, who reports (via Twitter) that Oakland had reached an agreement in principle with offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele.
Osemele, 26, has been a starter on the Ravens’ offensive line since being selected by the team in the second round of the 2012 draft, earning playing time at right tackle, guard, and – most recently – left tackle. Although he has been slowed a little by injuries in recent years, missing multiple games in each of the last three seasons, Osemele has been a reliable performer on Baltimore’s line. Pro Football Focus ranked him 18th out of 77 qualified tackles in 2015, giving him the second-highest run-blocking grade at the position.
While the Ravens reportedly made a strong effort to bring Osemele back, their cap situation didn’t afford them nearly as much flexibility as the Raiders have. After a strong contract year, the Iowa State product looked poised to become at least the highest-paid guard in the NFL, and perhaps to be paid like a top-10 left tackle.
In fact, Getlin tweets that Osemele’s market was “incredibly hot” and that his deal will “blow the top off” the guard market. That price tag was likely too high for the Ravens and for the Vikings, who were also said to be pursuing Osemele. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that the Jets also dropped out of the running based on the lineman’s asking price.
Although the Raiders and Osemele have reached an agreement in principle, it’s worth reiterating that no teams can complete deals with outside free agents until Wednesday afternoon at 3:00pm central time. While most verbal agreements are completed at that time, we have seen deals fall apart during the legal tampering period in the past. A year ago, Frank Gore appeared headed to the Eagles before he signed with the Colts instead. Two years ago, the Raiders seemed on the verge of signing Rodger Saffold to a huge contract before concerns over his physical scuttled the deal.
Assuming the two sides do finalize the deal on Wednesday, it will be interesting to see how the Raiders plan to use Osemele. The team could slot him in at guard, but with left tackle Donald Penn eligible to hit the open market on Wednesday himself, Oakland has some flexibility when it comes to Osemele’s role. Their agreement with the ex-Raven may also give the Raiders some leverage in negotiations with Penn, whom they reportedly want to retain. Having entered the day armed with approximately $60MM in cap room, per OverTheCap.com, the club certainly has the flexibility to sign both players.
Osemele ranked fourth overall in our list of this year’s top 50 free agents.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Free Agent Rumors: Saints, Patriots, Jaguars
The latest free agent rumors:
- The Saints have expressed an interest in bringing safety Rafael Bush back to the team, Sean Fazende of FOX 8 tweets.
- Bears free agent cornerback Sherrick McManis is visiting the Patriots, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter). Earlier today, it was reported that McManis was visiting an AFC East team and we now know that club’s identity. The Jaguars are also interested in him, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (on Twitter).
- Quarterback Luke McCown visited the Colts today, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweeted.
- Danny Trevathan, who just signed with the Bears, offered up an interesting answer when asked if the Packers reached out to him. “No, they didn’t. I wish they would have, but they didn’t,” the linebacker said (Twitter link via NFL Network).
- Defensive end Frank Kearse is visiting the Patriots, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- The Ravens hosted guard Vlad Ducasse on a visit today, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Ducasse started 11 of 16 games for Chicago in 2015. Ducasse began his career with the Jets, a team that was high on his raw talent but never got to see him put it altogether on the field.
Free Agent Rumors: RG3, Rams, Chiefs
The latest free agent rumors:
- Robert Griffin III would “very much” like to play for the Rams in Los Angeles, a source tells Vincent Bonsignore of the Daily News (on Twitter). The 49ers and the Broncos have also been connected to Griffin this week.
- Despite outside interest, Tamba Hali says that he gave no thought at all to leaving the Chiefs, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star tweets. The Falcons were reportedly a finalist for his services.
- Stevan Ridley‘s market continues to unfold but the Patriots haven’t shown interest in a reunion, Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald tweets. Still, Howe (link) points out that the Patriots reached out to Ridley late last offseason before he joined the Jets, so nothing can be completely ruled out, even though that union is still unlikely. Ridley racked up 1,263 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground back in 2012 for the Pats.
- The Ravens reviewed eight free agent tight ends but after watching a handful of plays from Ben Watson on tape, they determined that he was their guy, GM Ozzie Newsome told reporters, including Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun (on Twitter).
- The Eagles‘ interest in defensive tackle Cedric Thornton is “tepid,” Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. The Eagles haven’t ruled out a return, however.
- The Seahawks are interested in guard Ted Larsen, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). As we learned yesterday, Larsen will also take a visit with the 49ers.
Ravens’ Jimmy Smith Restructures Contract
Veteran cornerback Jimmy Smith has become the latest Raven to restructure his contract, freeing up a little extra cap room for the team for the 2016 season.
According to Brian McFarland of RussellStreetReport.com (via Twitter), Smith converted $6MM of his base salary for 2016 to a signing bonus.
Smith had initially been set to earn a fully guaranteed $7MM base salary for 2016, with a cap hit of $9.6MM. By reducing his salary to $1MM and spreading that new $6MM bonus evenly over the remaining four years on his contract, the Ravens free up $4.5MM in cap room, reducing Smith’s cap number to $5.1MM.
Smith’s is the latest in line of contracat restructures for the Ravens, who also reworked Marshal Yanda‘s contract, extended Joe Flacco, and had Kyle Arrington take a pay cut. As Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun observes (via Twitter), those moves ultimately created more than $15MM in cap savings.
While Smith’s new-look contract helps the Ravens out in the short term, the team may need to address the deal again as soon as next year. By adding $1.5MM to the cornerback’s cap hit in each year from 2017 to 2019, Baltimore increases his future cap charges to $12.6MM (2017), $13.1MM (2018), and $13.6MM (2019).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
RFA Tender Decisions: 3/9/16
Unrestricted free agent news will obviously dominate the day, but several clubs also had to make decisions on whether to offer tenders to restricted free agents. We’ll round up those decisions here:
Tendered
- Buccaneers – Bradley McDougald, S (Twitter link via Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times)
- Second-round tender (Twitter link via Auman)
- Jets – Kenbrell Thompkins, WR (Twitter link via Rand Getlin of NFL.com)
- Packers – Justin Perillo, TE (Twitter link via Wes Hodges of the Green Bay Press Gazette)
- Rams – Benny Cunningham, RB (Twitter link via Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com)
- Ravens – Chase Ford, TE (Twitter link via Jeff Zriebec of the Baltimore Sun)
- Saints – Josh Hill, TE; Tim Lelito, C (Twitter links via Mike Triplett of ESPN.com)
Non-Tendered
- 49ers – Tony Jerod-Eddie, DL (Twitter link via Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com)
- Bears – Patrick Omameh, G; LaRoy Reynolds, LB; Deonte Thompson, WR (Twitter link via Kevin Fishbain of ChicagoFootball.com)
- Bills – Stefan Charles, DT; Ty Powell, LB; Bacarri Rambo, S (Twitter link via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com)
- Chargers – Cordarro Law, LB; Brandian Ross, S; Damion Square, DL; Johnnie Troutman, G (Twitter link via Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune)
- Colts – Dan Herron, RB (Twitter link via Mike Chappell of FOX 59)
- Falcons – Nathan Stupar, LB (Twitter link via Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com)
- Lions – Tim Wright, TE (Twitter link via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press)
- Packers – Andy Mulumba, LB (Twitter link via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
- Patriots – Kevin Hughes, T; Sealver Siliga, DL; Brian Tyms, WR (Twitter link via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com)
- Rams – Chase Reynolds, RB (Twitter link via Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post Dispatch ); Daren Bates, S and Brian Folkerts, C (Twitter link via Nick Wagoner of ESPN.com )
- Ravens – Marlon Brown, WR; Micajah Reynolds, DT; Brynden Trawick, S (Twitter links via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle and Jeff Zriebec of the Baltimore Sun)
- Seahawks – Alvin Bailey, OL; Derrick Coleman, FB; Ricardo Lockette, WR; Christine Michael, RB; Nick Moody, LB (Twitter links via Greg Bell of the News Tribune and Brady Henderson of 710 ESPN Seattle)
- Steelers – Terence Garvin, LB (Twitter link via Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
- Washington – Tom Compton, T (Twitter link via Tarik El-Bashir of CSNWashington.com)
Free Agent Rumors: Saints, Fleener, Falcons
A deal between tight end Ladarius Green and the Steelers remains imminent, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com tweets. The Saints were looking at the athletic tight end as well, but they’ll now turn their attention to Coby Fleener. Fleener is available and less likely to be retained by the Colts after they signed Dwayne Allen to a hefty new contract.
Here are the latest free agent rumors on what has been a crazy day:
- After adding one of the league’s top centers in Alex Mack, Gino Gradkowski is not expected to be retained by the Falcons, according to a source who spoke with Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- The Jets are exploring the market for offensive lineman, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). Mehta reports that New York did its homework on tackle Donald Stephenson before he agreed to terms with the Broncos, and adds that J.R. Sweezy is worth keeping an eye on as a Jets target.
- Jenna Laine of SportsTalkFlorida confirms (via Twitter) that the Buccaneers are likely moving on from cornerback Sterling Moore, as first reported by JoeBucsFan.com.
- After receiving a low-end tender from the Broncos, RFA running back C.J. Anderson has generated interest from “multiple” teams, tweets Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post. Denver has the right to match any offer sheet Anderson signs, but won’t receive compensation if he leaves.
- The market for Ravens outside linebacker Courtney Upshaw is “not exactly wild,” tweets Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports. Upshaw may ultimately return to Baltimore, though the Colts are worth monitoring — Indianapolis’ new defensive coordinator is Upshaw’s former linebackers coach, Ted Monachino.
Market Intensifying For RB Bilal Powell
2:59pm: The market for Powell is intensifying, according to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com, who suggests (via Twitter) that the Patriots are no longer in the mix.
1:22pm: The Broncos are also interest in Powell, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post (Twitter link).
8:20am: The Cowboys, Patriots, Ravens, and the incumbent Jets are showing interest in running back Bilal Powell, league sources tell Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. The Jets could be looking at a full makeover at running back with Stevan Ridley on the open market and Chris Ivory on his way to the Jaguars. 
Powell averaged a career-high 4.5 yards per carry on 70 attempts last season and added a personal-best 47 receptions. If he does leave, it will be a disappointment for head coach Todd Bowles, who has been a vocal supporter of the running back.
“He’s been more of a complete back than even I thought he was coming in. He can block. He can run. He’s not just a pass catcher. He does a bunch of things for us,” Bowles said in January.
The 27-year-old has spent all five of his career NFL seasons with the Jets. In terms of overall yards and usage, his best season came in 2013 when he carried the ball 176 times for 697 yards and one touchdown. Last season, Powell had 70 rushing attempts for 313 yards, giving him a 4.5 yards-per-attempt average.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
AFC Contract Details: Osemele, Irvin, M. Jackson
Here are the latest updates on many recently agreed-upon or signed contracts from around the AFC:
AFC West:
- Kelechi Osemele, G/T (Raiders): Five years, $58.5MM. $25.4MM fully guaranteed. Max value of $60MM via Pro Bowl incentives. Guaranteed base salaries of $6.7MM in 2016 and 2017. $6MM roster bonuses in 2016 and 2017 (Twitter links via Tom Pelissero of USA Today and Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post).
- Bruce Irvin, OLB (Raiders): Four years, $37MM. $14.5MM fully guaranteed. $19MM total guarantee. $6MM roster bonus in 2016, $2.25MM roster bonus in 2017 (Twitter link via Wilson).
- Joe Barksdale, T (Chargers): Four years, $22MM. $10.5MM fully guaranteed. $4MM signing bonus. Fully guaranteed $3.5MM salary in 2016. $3MM of $4.5MM salary in 2017 fully guaranteed (Twitter links via Wilson).
AFC South:
- Malik Jackson, DL (Jaguars): Six years, $85.5MM. $31.5MM fully guaranteed. $42MM total guarantee. $10.5MM of $13.5MM base salary for 2018 becomes fully guaranteed in March 2018 (Twitter links via Pelissero).
- Dwayne Allen, TE (Colts): Four years, $29.4MM. $4MM signing bonus. $16MM total guarantee (including injury guarantee). $5.5MM roster bonus in 2016. $2MM roster bonus on fifth day of 2017 league year (Twitter links via Wilson).
- Ben Jones, C/G (Titans): Four years, $17.5MM. $3.5MM signing bonus. $7.5MM guaranteed. $2.5MM of $3.5MM salary for 2017 is fully guaranteed. $500K roster bonus due in March 2016 (Twitter links via Wilson).
- Chris Clark, T (Texans): Two years, $6MM. $1MM signing bonus. $750K roster bonus due on March 16 (Twitter link via Wilson).
- Adam Vinatieri, K (Colts): Two years, $6MM. $1MM of $3.25MM salary for 2016 is guaranteed. Can earn $500K in field-goal percentage incentives each year (Twitter link via Wilson).
AFC North:
- Shareece Wright, CB (Ravens): Three years, $13MM. $4MM signing bonus. Up to $1MM annually in playing-time incentives (Twitter link via Wilson).
- William Gay, CB (Steelers): Three years, $7.5MM. $1.9MM signing bonus (Twitter link via Wilson).
- Ben Watson, TE (Ravens): Two years, $7MM. $2MM signing bonus. $3MM fully guaranteed. $1MM roster bonus due April 1, 2016. $1MM escalator for 2017 (Twitter link via Wilson).
- Tank Carder, LB (Browns): Two years, $2.5MM. $300K signing bonus (Twitter link via Wilson).
AFC East:
- Mario Williams, DE (Dolphins): Two years, $17MM. $4MM signing bonus. Fully guaranteed $4.485MM salary for 2016. $3.5MM of $8.45MM salary for 2017 guaranteed for injury; becomes fully guaranteed on fifth day of 2017 league year. Deal includes incentives for sacks, playing time, Pro Bowls (all Twitter links via Wilson).
- LaAdrian Waddle, T (Patriots): Two years, $2.35MM. $250K signing bonus. $200K annually in per-game roster bonuses (Twitter links via Wilson and Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press).