Today’s minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
Chicago Bears
Denver Broncos
Roquan Smith is officially in the fold. On Tuesday morning, the Bears announced that Smith has signed his rookie deal. 
The Bears, predictably, did not release the details of Smith’s pact, but per the terms of his slot, we know that the No. 8 overall pick has received a four-year, $18MM guaranteed pact. And, via Mike Florio of PFT, we have the details on his guarantee structure in the event of discipline.
The two sides hammered out a formula that protects Smith against most of the potential incidents that would take place on the field. Smith’s guarantees will void only if the league office suspends him for three games or more for something that would happen during a play, such as lowering his helmet or roughing the quarterback. That’s not a cumulative three games, so Smith can be suspended for one or two games multiple times throughout his contract without forfeiting guarantees.
If Smith is suspended for one game for a post-play infraction in which he’s defending himself or a teammate, he’ll maintain his guarantees. For two games, however, he’ll forfeit them. If he’s deemed to be the aggressor in a post-play incident and suspended for one game, he will lose his guarantees.
Ultimately, the Bears had to deviate quite a bit from the standard language in order to get Smith on the practice field. It’s not ideal for Chicago, but the team is undoubtedly relieved to have its top draft pick under contract.
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The Bears and first round linebacker Roquan Smith have finally agreed to terms on his rookie deal, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The agreement means that the longest rookie holdout of 2018 is finally over. 
[RELATED: Bears Sign Knile Davis]
Smith stayed away from the Bears as his agents balked at language in the Bears’ proposal. His reps wanted his guarantees protected in the event of league discipline, which spans off-the-field issues as well as late hits and things of that nature on the field. It’s not immediately clear where things landed, but we should know the specifics soon.
Smith, the No. 8 overall pick in the 2018 draft, is believed by some to have one of the highest ceilings of any player in this year’s class. Smith finished in the top ten of Heisman voting in his final year at Georgia as he tallied 137 total tackles, 14 tackles for a loss, and 6.5 sacks.
The rookie projects to start at outside linebacker for the Bears this year, opposite of Leonard Floyd. Smith may be behind the 8-ball in learning every part of the scheme, but the Bears are hopeful that he’ll be able to get on track quickly.
Per the terms of his slot, Smith’s deal will come in as a four-year, $18MM guaranteed pact.
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The Bears have signed free agent running back Knile Davis, as Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk reports. In a corresponding move, the team has released offensive lineman Kaleb Johnson, who was signed just last week.
In Chicago, Davis will reunite with Matt Nagy, the Bears’ new head coach who served as the Chiefs’ quarterbacks coach during Davis’ first three seasons in Kansas City (the Chiefs selected Davis, an Arkansas product, in the third round of the 2013 draft). The Chiefs elevated Nagy to offensive coordinator in 2016, and they traded Davis to the Packers for a conditional draft pick in October of that year. Green Bay released him just two weeks later, and Davis re-signed with Kansas City shortly thereafter.
Davis was reasonably effective during his first two years in the league, rushing for 705 yards and 10 touchdowns as a change-of-pace back. He also ran back a kickoff for a touchdown in 2013 and 2014, and even though his workload as a running back was dramatically reduced in 2015, he still returned 29 kicks.
However, he was released by the Steelers before the start of the 2017 campaign, and he was not picked up by any other club (though he did work out for the Jets last September). As Williams notes, if Davis is to crack Chicago’s roster, he will likely have to do so on the strength of his return ability. The Bears boast a fairly crowded backfield, headlined by Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen, but Davis does appear to have a fan in Nagy.
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A former franchise quarterback will add his name to the growing list of high-profile ex-NFL players, coaches and executives who will work with the Alliance of American Football.
Michael Vick‘s set to be affiliated with the AAF, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports. Vick will call plays for the Brad Childress-coached Atlanta franchise.
Vick worked with Childress recently as well, serving as a coaching intern with the Chiefs during their 2017 training camp when Childress was on Kansas City’s staff. Vick last played for the 2015 Steelers. The former Falcons quarterback joins Troy Polamalu, Hines Ward and Jared Allen in attaching their names to the new venture.
At least one NFL team is also helping the AAF prepare for what figures to be an interesting talent-gathering period. The Bears provided the AAF’s Phoenix franchise’s GM, Phil Savage, a list of players to scout while he was at Chicago’s camp, Fowler notes. The AAF plans to primarily target players that don’t make NFL rosters this year.
Set to launch in February 2019, the eight-team league has its head coaches signed up and contract structure set at three-year, $250K agreements. The $83K-per-year contracts, which include out clauses in case an NFL team comes calling, are non-guaranteed and fall well short of NFL practice squad salaries (up to $129K for a 17-week season this season). But NFL practice squad spots will assuredly be more coveted real estate than AAF rosters next year. Although, incentives will be available in these AAF deals, and marketing and public appearances can trigger these bonuses, per Fowler. Set for a 2020 debut, the XFL is planning to pay players $75K per year, which will make for interesting bidding wars as these leagues attempt to find their footing.
NFL personnel have lamented the lack of a developmental league in the years since NFL Europe’s demise, and Fowler writes the AAF may be closer to the NBA’s G League, rather than serving as competition.
“Our objective is to take some of those people who can’t quite make it and make them into quality NFL players,” AAF exec Bill Polian said, via Fowler.
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The Bears have swapped one offensive lineman for another. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reports (via Twitter) that the team has signed guard/center Kaleb Johnson. To make room on the roster, the Bears have waived center Jack Allen.
It’s a bit surprising that the Bears have parted ways with Allen, especially since they added the 25-year-old just last week. Despite just a week of practice, the former undrafted free agent out of Michigan State was one of the team’s standouts during their preseason opener. With Cody Whitehair, James Daniels, and Hroniss Grasu sitting out, Allen went on to play 48 snaps for the Bears.
Head coach Matt Nagy even lauded Allen’s contributions following the game.
‘‘For him to come in on short notice and for him to come in and play center, it’s hard,’’ Nagy said (via Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times).
Taking Allen’s spot on the team is Johnson, who will ultimately provide Chicago with a bit more versatility. The 25-year-old has yet to play in a regular-season NFL game since going undrafted out of Rutgers in 2015, but he’s managed to catch on with several teams’ practice squads. Johnson has had stints with the Ravens, Browns, Cardinals, and Chiefs.
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The Bears are no longer fighting first-round linebacker Roquan Smith on contract language that would void his guaranteed money were he to be suspended under the NFL’s new helmet contact rule, according to David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune.
However, Smith — the final rookie without a contract in place — is not attending Chicago’s training camp as his agents are still reticent about certain language in the Bears’ proposed pact, per Haugh. Smith’s agents want him protected in the event he’s suspended for an event that’s considered “outside the realm of a football play”: a late hit, for instance. The Bears aren’t willing to begin a new contractual precedent by including such language, although a team source tells Waugh that disinclination has nothing to do with Smith’s character.
Chicago has reportedly been adamant that it wouldn’t attempt to void Smith’s future guarantees over a “football play,” per Haugh. As evidence, the club has provided its reaction to linebacker Danny Trevathan‘s illegal hit on Packers wideout Davante Adams in 2017. After that incident, the Bears never made any attempt to recoup money from Trevathan or void his remaining guaranteed money.
Per Haugh, only eight teams have acceded to rookie demands of language that would protect their guarantees in the event of a helmet-related suspension. However, just four clubs have allowed the protection that Smith wants, so it’s unlikely the Bears want to create a new precedent given that most of the NFL has not given in.
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The Bears and Roquan Smith are at a “stalemate,” head coach Matt Nagy says. The lack of progress is likely frustrating for Nagy & Co. as Smith has yet to report to camp. 
“It is at a stalemate, but at the same time I’m not going to get into any more of where it’s at publicly. I don’t think it’s fair to him, I don’t think it’s fair to his agent, I don’t think it’s fair to our organization. We’re going to keep it between us and I think that’s the best thing to do right now,” Nagy said (via Mark Potash of the Sun Times).
The main holdup in talks may be related to the forfeiture of guarantees in the event of a suspension. This year, the league has introduced a new rule this offseason that could result in players getting suspended for lowering their helmets on hits. If the league starts handing out suspensions en masse, Smith’s agents do not want him to lose his financial security.
Meanwhile, one report says the real issue is language that allows the team to void guarantees for many different reasons, including team-imposed discipline. Whatever the holdup is, it’s becoming an problem.
Only four first-round picks have held out in the last five years. Under the current CBA, Smith’s holdout is the second-longest behind Joey Bosa’s 31-day holdout with the Chargers in 2016. The good news for the Bears is this – Bosa was stellar despite missing practices and went on to win the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year trophy.
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