Draft Pick Signings: Thursday
Over the course of the next few weeks, as the league’s 32 teams lock up their draft picks, we’ll dedicate individual posts to first- and second-round picks reaching agreements with their respective clubs. Already today, for instance, we’ve passed along word of Trae Waynes signing with the Vikings and Nelson Agholor reaching a deal with the Eagles.
However, given the lack of drama involved in rookie contract negotiations under the new CBA, news on players who were selected in the third round or later will be relegated to round-up posts. Here are Thursday’s mid- to late-round picks who signed their deals, with any additional updates added to the top of the page throughout the day:
4:52pm:
- In addition to confirming the signing of Deon Simon (noted below), the Jets also announced the signings of third-round outside linebacker Lorenzo Mauldin and fourth-round quarterback Bryce Petty, per a team release.
- The Vikings are gradually agreeing to terms with nearly their entire draft class over the course of the day. Chris Tomasson (Twitter links) has updates on two more, reporting that fifth-round tight end MyCole Pruitt, fifth-round wideout Stefon Diggs, and seventh-round offensive lineman Austin Shepherd have all reached deals with the club.
- The Ravens have signed fifth-round guard Robert Myers and sixth-round wide receiver Darren Waller, per Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links).
- The Seahawks have signed fifth-round cornerback Tye Smith, tweets Terry Blount of ESPN.com.
3:50pm:
- The Vikings have officially added three more draftees to the roster, agreeing to terms with sixth-round defensive lineman B.J. Dubose and seventh-round linebacker Edmond Robinson, according to reports from Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune and Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter links). In addition to those late-rounders, fourth-round offensive lineman T.J. Clemmings has signed his deal, tweets agent Mike McCartney.
- Sixth-round lineman Kristjan Sokoli has signed his four-year rookie deal with the Seahawks, tweets agent Brett Tessler. A defensive lineman at Buffalo, Sokoli will be moving over to the offensive line in Seattle.
- Jets seventh-round defensive tackle Deon Simon and Patriots seventh-round defensive end Xzavier Dickson have signed their rookie deals, according to tweets from their respective agencies. Simon will get a signing bonus in the neighborhood of $73K, while Dickson’s bonus will be worth about $53K.
2:43pm:
- Sixth-round offensive lineman Tyrus Thompson has agreed to terms with the Vikings and will officially sign when he arrives at the team’s facility, tweets Darren Wolfson of KSTP. Thompson is the second Vikes draftee to reach a deal with the club.
- Another Packers draftee has agreed to terms with the team, per Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Post-Gazette, who tweets that the club has struck a deal with sixth-rounder fullback Aaron Ripkowski. Ripkowski was the first of three players selected by the Packers in the sixth round, and is also the first one to reach an agreement with the team.
- The Browns have signed sixth-round tight end Randall Telfer, tweets Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. Telfer will receive a signing bonus of just under $118K.
1:48pm:
- The Packers have agreed to terms on four-year rookie contracts with fifth-round quarterback Brett Hundley and fourth-round linebacker Jake Ryan, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter links). Green Bay is expected to lock up most or all of the rest of its late-round picks by the end of the day, writes Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com.
- The Ravens have agreed to contract terms with fourth-round defensive back Tray Walker, reports Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (Twitter link). The final player selected in the fourth round, as a supplemental pick, Walker will count for about $521K against the cap in 2015.
- Seventh-round center Austin Reiter has agreed to terms on his rookie contract with Washington, tweets John Keim of ESPN.com. Reiter will receive a signing bonus worth just under $75K.
Ravens, Maxx Williams Agree To Deal
The Ravens have reached a deal with second-round tight end Maxx Williams, a source tells Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Williams is the second Baltimore draftee known to have struck an agreement with the club, following fourth-round cornerback Tray Walker.
Williams, the 55th overall pick last Friday, could become an immediate contributor in Baltimore given the uncertain health status of veteran tight end Dennis Pitta and the offseason departure of last year’s starter, Owen Daniels. The Ravens felt strongly enough about Williams to give up a fifth-round pick to move up three spots in the second round to make sure they landed him.
Per Over the Cap’s draft pool figures, Williams will make just over $4MM on his four-year deal with Baltimore, including a signing bonus of about $1.21MM
Ed Reed Officially Retires As Raven
THURSDAY, 1:09pm: Reed officially signed a one-day contract with the Ravens today, retiring as a member of the team (Twitter link).
WEDNESDAY, 7:07pm: After a 12-year career, Ravens safety Ed Reed has decided to walk away from the game, as Ryan Mink of BaltimoreRavens.com writes. The Ravens and Reed will hold a press conference tomorrow morning to formally announce the news.
Reed, of course, has not played in the NFL since 2013. The veteran signed on with the Texans for that season after playing his first eleven years in Baltimore but he didn’t look like the No. 20 of old. After losing his starting job in Houston, he was released in November, and signed by the Jets. He finished the season with 38 tackles and four interceptions, grading as the league’s 30th-best safety per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). Despite how things turned out for him that year, Reed made it known that he was still hoping to play in 2014. That opportunity, however, never materialized.
Over the course of his career, Reed earned a whopping nine Pro Bowl selections and eight All-Pro nods. After the 2012 season, Reed finally got to host the Lombardi Trophy after helping the Ravens win the Super Bowl.
Last year, Reed, referenced Barry Sanders in saying that he could choose to abruptly retire without any fanfare. The safety didn’t go the Derek Jeter route towards retirement, but it sounds like he is allowing himself a proper sendoff.
AFC Links: Collins, Dorsett, Timmons
One of the highest-regarded undrafted free agents in history, La’el Collins figures to be a premier topic in May as he attempts to begin a now-unorthodox career.
The Titans, however, won’t be among the teams pursuing the ex-LSU lineman that was a surefire first-round pick as recently as earlier this week, according to The Tennesseean’s Jim Wyatt on Twitter. The team remains in need of a right tackle but did add two interior linemen in the draft — guard Jeremiah Poutasi and center Andy Gallik in the third and sixth rounds, respectively.
Here is some additional news from around the AFC.
- The Colts‘ draft puzzled Indianapolis Star columnist Gregg Doyel, with the team adding players in key spots that may not be able to contribute much this season — one with immense expectations. Doyel argues the team did not address needs of defensive tackle and safety early enough, with one of each added on Day 3. Indianapolis ranked 18th in run defense last season. Part-time players last year, Josh Chapman and Montori Hughes, are the Colts’ top two nose tackle options.
- The crux of Doyel’s argument, first-round pick Phillip Dorsett, could also find himself a key player in the Colts’ offense from the start, writes the Indianapolis Star’s Stephen Holder. Dorsett, CFL import Duron Carter and former All-Pro Andre Johnson add to a loaded wideout corps that was at times slowed by descending veterans Reggie Wayne and Hakeem Nicks last year. Holder wonders if the 34-year-old Johnson will give way to Dorsett in some three-wide sets or when the Colts deploy the two-tight end look they often do.
- One of now four linebackers with first-round pedigrees in Pittsburgh, Lawrence Timmons is in line for a contract extension come 2016, reports Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The Steelers’ second-highest-paid player and NFL’s best-compensated inside linebacker’s current deal that pays him $12.6MM this season and $11.8MM next year runs through ’16.
- With just two starters locked in for this season up front, the Broncos are positioning their offensive line youngsters less than three days after acquiring them. Second-round choice Ty Sambrailo will open his career at right tackle, where the Broncos have a glaring need after using three players there last year, while versatile fourth-rounder Max Garcia will begin work behind Louis Vasquez at right guard, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. Last year’s third-rounder, Michael Schofield, didn’t suit up for a game as a rookie despite the Broncos’ right tackle issues and is now playing behind Ryan Clady at left tackle.
- Mel Kiper Jr. envisions Ravens second-round pick Maxx Williams as an offensive rookie of the year candidate, writes Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. The ESPN draft veteran also opined Breshad Perriman will be a better player than Torrey Smith.
Sunday Roundup: Collins, AFC North, Pats
Let’s take a look at a few notes from around the league on this post-draft Sunday:
- The La’el Collins saga will be one of the more fascinating storylines to watch over the coming days. Gil Brandt of NFL.com tweets that if Collins is cleared of any wrongdoing after his meeting with Louisiana police tomorrow, he will sign as an undrafted free agent. Brandt adds that there will be a great deal of interest in Collins’ services if he is, in fact, cleared.
- Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com looks at what Collins could make as an undrafted free agent,
- It appears that Browns ownership is “digging in” and committing to the Ray Farmer–Mike Pettine regime, writes Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com.
- Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer passes along Farmer’s and Pettine’s responses to questions as to why the Browns did not select a quarterback in this year’s draft. The GM and head coach simply reaffirmed their faith in the team’s current signal-callers while acknowledging that the group does not include an elite talent. However, Pettine simply stated, “We’re not going to over-prioritize the quarterback position.”
- The Ravens have invited Maryland DE Andre Monroe to rookie mini-camp on a tryout basis, writes Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun.
- Paul Dehner, Jr. of The Cincinnati Enquirer describes how the Bengals passed on the “acrobatic athletes and track stars” in this weekend’s draft and instead focused on powerful linemen and strong tight ends.
- The Eagles may regret not selecting an offensive lineman in the draft, writes Jeff McLane of The Philadelphia Inquirer. As we learned earlier today, however, four of the team’s 16 undrafted free agents are offensive linemen.
- Although they did not address their cornerback need in the draft, Karen Guregian of The Boston Herald believes the Patriots strengthened the secondary simply by adding some punch to the team’s pass rush.
- The Patriots passed on drafting a receiver for the second consecutive year, meaning that third-year wideout Aaron Dobson will still have a good chance to live up to his considerable potential, writes Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com.
- With a draft class that most analysts agree is a strong one, and after an active free agency period, Ryan O’Halloran of The Florida Times-Union says the Jaguars are finally adding depth to their roster and creating some much-needed competition.
- Jeff Duncan of The Times-Picayune says the Saints‘ draft class, which does not include a single wide receiver or tight end, reaffirms their faith in Drew Brees, Sean Payton, and the offense as a whole.
NFC Notes: Eagles, Robinson, Cards, Vikes
Though the draft is over, the Eagles want to add more players, according to head coach Chip Kelly, who says the club want to bring in more offensive lineman and a tight end to replace James Casey (Twitter link via Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com). Philadelphia could look to add UDFAs and/or veteran free agents in the coming weeks.
Let’s look at some more notes from the NFC:
- Offensive tackle Corey Robinson says the Ravens, Dolphins, and Washington all called him with interest in signing him as a UDFA before he was chosen by the Lions, according to Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
- Cardinals GM Steve Keim said he traded up for defensive lineman Rodney Gunter because he thought another team would take Gunter soon, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. That mystery team’s GM later confirmed to Keim that he would have selected Gunter had he been available, adds Urban.
- Guard Joe Berger was the only free agent whom the Vikings had interest in retaining, Vikes GM Rick Speilman tells Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter link). Berger did end up being the only Minnesota FA to stick around, inking a two-year deal. (The Vikings also re-signed defensive tackle Tom Johnson and long snapper Cullen Loeffler, but both technically signed before the start of free agency).
- The 49ers drafted Blake Bell as a tight end, but the club thinks the former college quarterback could serve as an emergency QB in the NFL, per Matt Barrows of the San Francisco Bee (Twitter link), who adds that the presence of Bell could affect San Francisco’s roster construction.
AFC Quotes: Belichick, Newsome, Telesco
Following the second day of the draft, the league’s coaches and general managers took time to explain their logic to reporters. We already took a look at some of the notable soundbites out of the NFC, so let’s now shift our focus to the other conference…
Patriots coach Bill Belichick on the team’s selection of safety Jordan Richards in the second round (via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com):
“[Richard is a]strong tackler, a pretty instinctive guy, and certainly able to play on the punt team, kickoff return, kickoff coverage and punt return — could be a matchup guy outside or maybe a hold-up guy in the box. I’m sure he’ll be able to contribute in the kicking game.”
Belichick on his team’s trade with the Browns:
“At the start of the day, we had a little bit of spacing there [with our picks] — top of the fourth, bottom of the fourth, no fifth, but top of the sixth, top of the seventh, bottom of the seventh. Now we have three picks in the fourth round, and we’ve kind of filled in that fifth round.”
Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome on the team’s decision to move up and select tight end Maxx Williams (via ESPN.com’s Jamison Hensley):
“We get to a point where we feel it’s time to go get a player, we wait through three or four picks and then I get a little antsy. When you’ve got ammunition, you just go and get the player. It wouldn’t have mattered who was picking at that spot for us to move up and get the guy.”
Chargers general manager Tom Telesco on his team’s draft philosophy (via Eric D. Williams of ESPN.com):
“Jim Irsay, the owner for the Colts, almost every year of the draft used to always say, ‘You don’t control the draft. The draft controls you.’ And that’s a lot of times what happens. There may be a certain way you want to go. But if there’s not a player you have evaluated in that spot, there’s nothing you can do about it. So you’ve got to stick with your board… These players fit the characteristics we’re looking for. I think they make us a better football team, and we’re happy to have these guys. They’re going to have pretty good careers here.”
AFC Notes: Steelers, Ravens, Chargers
Before drafting Mississippi cornerback Senquez Golson with the 56th overall pick, the Steelers tried to move up and take Minnesota tight end Maxx Williams, tweets Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh-Tribune Review. The Steelers were unable to pull it off, however, and Williams ended up going 55th to the AFC North rival Ravens, who traded up to get ahead of Pittsburgh. Not surprisingly, that displeased the Steelers, according to Kaboly.
While the Steelers may not have been happy to see their division rivals land Williams, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) doesn’t think they were going to take the tight end themselves in that spot — according to La Canfora, Pittsburgh was “locked in” on Golson at No. 56.
Here are a few more draft-related leftovers from day two, from around the AFC…
- Speaking of the Ravens, they’re eyeing some of the draft’s remaining cornerbacks, per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter).
- The Chargers had discussions with multiple teams about moving down in the second round, but they decided to stay put because they wanted Miami linebacker Denzel Perryman, Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune tweets. The Bolts took Perryman 48th overall.
- Broncos general manager John Elway didn’t consider taking a quarterback in the third round, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post. The Broncos instead used the 92nd overall pick on Ohio State tight end Jeff Heuerman.
- Discussing the teams’ day two draft picks, Texans GM Rick Smith said linebacker Benardrick McKinney was the highest-rated player on the club’s board when the second round began, and added that Jaelen Strong‘s injured wrist was medically cleared by the Texans’ staff prior to the draft (Twitter links via Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle).
- Josh Cribbs became expendable for the Colts when the team drafted Phillip Dorsett in the first round, and Indianapolis released Cribbs earlier today. According to GM Ryan Grigson, the club wanted to give the veteran returner a chance to find “greener pastures,” tweets Mike Chappell of RTV6.
Ravens Acquire 55th Pick From Cardinals
The Ravens have acquired the 55th pick from the Cardinals, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, and Andy Slater of 940-AM WINZ reports (Twitter) they will select Minnesota tight end Maxx Williams. The Cards will receive a second-round pick (No. 58) and fifth-rounder (No. 158), according to the NFL’s official Twitter account.
Pauline’s Latest: Mannion, Grayson, Sample
With day two of the NFL draft getting underway, Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net points out a few players to keep an eye on tonight. Here are the highlights from Pauline:
- The representatives for Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion are “pretty confident” he’ll come off the board quickly in the second round, writes Pauline. As for Garrett Grayson, there’s a chance he lands in the third round — the Bills and Jets are looking hard at Grayson, and the Rams, Broncos, and Washington are also in the mix.
- According to Pauline, many people believe Florida Atlantic cornerback D’Joun Smith will be selected in the second round tonight, which would be much earlier than expected.
- Safety James Sample, who is receiving interest from the Seahawks and Ravens, could also come off the board earlier than anticipated, per Pauline.
- South Carolina guard A.J. Cann likely won’t last long tonight. The Dolphins would love to nab Cann at No. 47, but the Jets have him graded highly and pick 37th, writes Pauline.