Bears, NT Eddie Goldman Agree On Extension
Shortly after authorizing the richest defensive contract in NFL history, the Bears are locking down another key defender.
The Bears and nose tackle Eddie Goldman agreed on a four-year extension worth more than $42MM Friday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The 24-year-old lineman will receive $25MM guaranteed as a result of this re-up, Rapoport reports.
A former second-round pick, Goldman was entering his contract year. Two days before the Bears begin their 2018 season, they now have another defensive lineman signed long-term. They took care of Akiem Hicks last year and now have four of their front-seven bastions signed to long-term deals, with Danny Trevathan and now Khalil Mack in the fold on veteran deals — one of which standing out a bit more than the other.
Goldman won’t be paid close to what Mack is, but the fourth-year starter is now one of the highest-paid nose tackles in the game.
Among pure 3-4 nose players, Goldman’s $10.5MM-AAV-plus agreement now is in line to sit second among this position. And among those extended long-term, Goldman’s deal now leads the pack. Ndamukong Suh is making $14MM this season, but the Rams gave him a one-year deal. Goldman’s now set to collect the most guaranteed money among nose tackles, his $25MM haul surpassing Damon Harrison‘s $20MM guarantee.
The Florida State alum started 15 games for Vic Fangio’s improved defense in 2017, bouncing back from a 2016 season-ending injury. He’ll join Hicks and Jonathan Bullard as first-unit linemen when the Bears face the Packers on Sunday night and will now do so knowing his long-term future will be in Chicago.
Khalil Mack Fallout: Suitors, Raiders, Donald
While the Bears won the 11th-hour Khalil Mack sweepstakes, several other teams are now known to have inquired or submitted bids. After reports of interest from the Jets, Browns and 49ers, Albert Breer of SI.com adds the Packers and Bills contacted the Raiders about their disgruntled defensive end. However, neither team was close to agreeing to the terms the Bears did. Only the Jets were on the Bears’ level in terms of compensation, Breer notes, and the Jets are not believed to have offered two first-round picks. A team was reported to have offered a first- and third-round pick for Mack; it’s possible that was the Jets. (Although, that report last week may have been about a possible first Bears offer rather than the Jets’.) The Packers hovered as the team Las Vegas pegged as the favorites to land Mack, but they will stick with Clay Matthews and Nick Perry on the edge. Buffalo has Jerry Hughes and Trent Murphy slotted as its starting edge defenders, with trade-block occupant Shaq Lawson positioned as a depth piece.
Here’s more from one of this century’s biggest NFL transactions:
- The Raiders submitted an offer to Mack’s agent in February, and it was swiftly rejected, Breer notes. Jon Gruden said Sunday the Raiders were not in the Bears’ ballpark on numbers, and Breer adds once the Aaron Donald $22.5MM-per-year deal surfaced, the Raiders knew Mack’s asking price was going to become more reasonable. For weeks, the Raiders gave hard no’s when approached with Mack trade inquiries. However, teams noticed the Raiders’ tone changed regarding Mack late last week, with Breer adding they were much more open to deals. It’s logical to assume the Donald agreement catalyzed this process.
- Chicago brass monitored the Mack situation all summer, with Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy having long meetings about the prospect of acquiring the 2016 defensive player of the year last week, Breer reports.
- As for why the Raiders didn’t try to hold their line about Mack playing on his fifth-year option salary? Jon Gruden referenced Kirk Cousins‘ situation with his brother Jay‘s Redskins as part of his reasoning for why he felt Mack had to go. “We have waited. We waited and waited and the (Week 1) Rams game was looming,” Gruden said, via Vic Tafur of The Athletic (subscription required). “Our feeling was that he was not going to report anytime soon. And … I saw the Redskins go through it with Kirk Cousins. … It’s a long process. You can wait it out; you can franchise him; you can force him to play. But we made a decision and we’re going to stand by it.” However, the Cousins situation dragged into the passer’s sixth season. Mack has yet to play his fifth. The Raiders had the franchise tag to use in 2019 and 2020, but it appears Mack’s threat about sitting out games prompted them to take the Bears’ unique offer while it was on the table.
- Mack’s six-year, $141MM Bears deal will feature $73.3MM coming to the new Bears weapon within the first three years, Breer notes. He’ll make $41MM overall in 2018. Donald’s three-year haul on his six-year, $135MM Rams pact will be $67MM.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/3/18
We’ll keep track of today’s practice squad moves here:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: RB Brian Hill
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: LB B.J. Bello, S Demetrious Cox, CB Chris Jones
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DE Christian LaCouture
Chicago Bears
Signed:
- OL Dejon Allen
- DL Abdullah Anderson
- QB Tyler Bray
- WR Tanner Gentry
- DB Michael Joseph
- DB Jonathon Mincy
- RB Taquan Mizzell
- RB Ryan Nall
- OL James Stone
- LB Josh Woods
Cleveland Browns
Signed:
- OL Christian DiLauro
- DL Daniel Ekuale
- DL Zaycoven Henderson
- RB Dontrell Hilliard
- OL Kyle Kalis
- TE Pharoah McKever
- DB Jeremiah McKinnon
- DB Montrel Meander
- DB Tigie Sankoh (International Pathway Player, does not count against 10-man limit)
- WR Da’Mari Scott
- LB Brady Sheldon
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: RB Bo Scarbrough
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DT John Atkins, CB Cre’Von LeBlanc, DE Eric Lee
Denver Broncos
- Signed: G Avery Gennesy, OLB Jeff Holland
Houston Texans
- Signed: CB Mike Tyson
Indianapolis Colts
Signed:
- G Jamil Douglas
- RB Jeremy McNichols
- DE Carroll Phillips
- LB Ahmad Thomas
- DE Jihad Ward
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: TE Thomas Duarte, QB Cardale Jones
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: TE Cole Hikutini
New England Patriots
- Signed: WR Jace Billingsley, T Eric Smith
New York Jets
Signed:
- WR Deontay Burnett
- C Nico Falah
- OT Dieugot Joseph
- RB De’Angelo Henderson
- DL Bronson Kaufasi
- QB John Wolford
New York Giants
- Signed: LB Ukeme Eligwe
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: G/T Denver Kirkland, DB Terrell Sinkfield, DB Rico Gafford
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: OL Zack Golditch
Seattle Seahawks
Signed:
- RB Lavon Coleman
- DT Frank Herron
- CB Akeem King
- TE Marcus Lucas
- QB Alex McGough
- T Elijah Nkansah
- WR Keenan Reynolds
- G Jordan Roos
- WR Caleb Scott
- LB Antwione Williams
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Signed:
- OL Cole Boozer
- CB Javien Elliott
- DE Demone Harris
- TE Tanner Hudson
- S Godwin Igwebuike
- DL Jeremiah Ledbetter
- LB Eric Nzeocha (International Pathway Player, does not count against 10-man limit)
- DE Pat O’Connor
- RB Dare Ogunbowale
- LB Azeem Victor
- WR Bobo Wilson
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: OL Coleman Shelton, WR Austin Proehl, DL Deon Simon, QB Logan Woodside
Bears Notes: CB's, DL, Shaheen
- The Bears will likely “survey [the] cornerback market” according to Brad Briggs of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Briggs also expects Chicago to add a defensive lineman in the coming days.
- Bears tight end Adam Shaheen will be placed on injured reserve, but “could potentially return later in season” according to the team’s GM Ryan Pace (Twitter link via the Bears’ official account). Shaheen, last year’s second round pick, is suffering from both ankle and foot injuries.
Latest On Raiders’ Khalil Mack Decision
Addressing the Khalil Mack trade for the first time, Jon Gruden said the Raiders’ salary cap situation indeed played into the choice to ship the team’s best player to Chicago. Particularly, Derek Carr‘s contract played a role.
While Gruden said (via the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Michael Gehlken, on Twitter) he was not involved in the daily communications between Mack’s agent and the team, he did indicate Carr’s $25MM-AAV contract — one the quarterback signed in hopes of leaving his team enough money to take care of teammates’ deals down the road — made it difficult to complete a Mack extension. And the Raiders weren’t particularly close on terms with their former superstar defender.
The Bears gave Mack a six-year, $141MM contract with $90MM in guarantees — raising the bar for defenders after Aaron Donald did so previously. Gruden confirmed (per Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area, on Twitter) the Raiders made an offer, and it was “not anywhere close” to the terms Mack received from the Bears.
Gruden said the 27-year-old phenom was part of why he accepted Mark Davis‘ offer to return to coach the Raiders, per Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter), but added the $90MM in guarantees was something the Raiders “could not do.” Rumors about the Raiders’ wherewithal to authorize such a guarantee surfaced late in the offseason, but nothing concrete emerged about Davis’ ability to construct a Mack extension. But it’s clear the Raiders were not willing to venture into the financial neighborhood the Bears were.
As for pulling the trigger on a trade now, when Mack was attached to a $13MM-plus fifth-year option and could have been franchise-tagged in the future, Gruden said he did not believe Mack was going to report and it was “time to move on.” Additionally, the Bears’ “unique” offer prompted the Raiders to make the deal, with the 55-year-old head coach adding there was no guarantee a proposal including two first-round picks would’ve been on the table in 2019 (Twitter links via The Athletic’s Vic Tafur).
The Raiders received interest from several teams on the Mack front — the Jets, 49ers and Browns are the known suitors who didn’t match the Bears’ haul — and ended up giving the Bears a second-round pick in the deal. Gruden said, via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link), he was not part of the discussion that sent a future Day 2 pick to the Bears.
With Gruden having cut or traded several of Reggie McKenzie‘s recent draft picks in recent weeks, and having criticized the 2015-17 classes during training camp — and on Sunday (Twitter link via Gehlken) — some understandable discord may be taking place in Oakland. Some around the NFL did not expect the Gruden-McKenzie partnership, one that featured Gruden siphoning much of the GM’s power, to last, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports tweets. However, Gruden said the Raiders came to this Mack decision “as an organization,” per Gehlken (on Twitter).
Sunday NFL Transactions: NFC North
Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four NFC North teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Bears, Lions, Packers, and Vikings are noted below.
Additionally, as of 12:00pm CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.
Here are Sunday’s NFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:
Chicago Bears
Signed:
Cut:
Placed on injured reserve:
- TE Adam Shaheen
Detroit Lions
Claimed:
- OT Andrew Donnal
- DB Dee Virgin
Cut:
Practice squad:
- LB Alex Barrett
- CB Mike Ford
- WR Chris Lacy
- S Rolan Milligan
- QB Jake Rudock
- LB Darnell Sankey
- OL Dan Skipper
Green Bay Packers
Practice squad:
- RB Joel Bouagnon
- C Austin Davis
- LB Kendall Donnerson
- FB Joe Kerridge
- DL Tyler Lancaster
- DL James Looney
- LB Greer Martini
- G/T Adam Pankey
Minnesota Vikings
Claimed:
Cut:
Practice squad:
- WR Jeff Badet
- WR Chad Beebe
- LB Reshard Cliett
- DT Curtis Cothran
- LB Garret Dooley
- C Cornelius Edison
- G Colby Gossett
- T Storm Norton
- S Jack Tocho
North Notes: Bears, Ravens, Packers, Browns
Among the offers the Raiders received for edge rusher Khalil Mack, the Bears‘ was “by far” the strongest, tweets Michael Lombardi of The Athletic. Chicago eventually acquired Mack, so it’s unsurprising their offer was the most substantial, but Lombardi’s report may indicate the Bears outbid rivals by several magnitudes. In the end, Chicago sent Oakland a 2019 first-round pic, a 2010 first-round pick, a 2020 third-round pick, and a 2019 sixth-round pick in exchange for Mack, a 2020 second-round round pick, and a conditional 2020 fifth-round pick. The Bears have since extended Mack, making him the NFL’s highest-paid defender.
- Ravens rookie kicker Kaare Vedvik was found with upper body injuries and is believed to have assaulted last night, according to Justin Fenton and Childs Walker of the Baltimore Sun. It’s a scary situation, and Vedvik’s health is the most serious issue at hand. Roster-wise, rival clubs were reportedly watching what Baltimore would do with Vedvik, as he was a possible waiver claim candidate. Instead, the Ravens placed him on the non-football injury list. PFR extends it best wishes to Vedvik in his recovery.
- Having already lost Jake Ryan for the season, the Packers are likely to be without fellow linebacker Oren Burks for at least Week, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Burks, a third-round rookie, had been projected to replace Ryan — who suffered a torn ACL last month — next to Blake Martinez. Instead, he’ll be sidelined for the season opener, and could miss a few additional weeks after that, according to Rapoport. Antonio Morrison, whom Green Bay recently acquired from the Colts, figures to take over in the middle of the Packers’ defense.
- Mychal Kendricks could conceivably file a grievance against the Browns after Cleveland released him following insider trading charges, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes. Meanwhile, Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports explains just how brazen Kendricks was in his misdeeds, as he accrued 1,500% return on an $80K investment.
Bears Trim Roster To 53
The Bears have reduced their roster to 53 players by making the following transactions:
Waived:
- T Dejon Allen
- DT Abdullah Anderson
- LB Jonathan Anderson (injured)
- WR Demarcus Ayers
- LS Tanner Carew
- DB Rashard Fant (injured)
- DB John Franklin
- WR Tanner Gentry
- DB Doran Grant
- G Brandon Greene
- LB Ro’Derrick Hoskins
- WR Garrett Johnson
- WR Malachi Jones
- DB Michael Joseph
- DB Cre’von LeBlanc
- DB Jonathon Mincy
- RB Taquan Mizzell
- G Jordan Morgan
- RB Ryan Nall
- DE Elijah Norris
- DB Nick Orr
- G Will Pericak
- TE Colin Thompson
- LB John Timu
- DT Cavon Walker
- P Ryan Winslow
- LB Josh Woods
Released:
- QB Tyler Bray
- RB Knile Davis
- LB Kasim Edebali
- WR Bennie Fowler
- DT John Jenkins
- T Matt McCants
- DE Nicholas Williams
Placed on injured reserve:
- WR Marlon Brown
Eagles To Acquire DB Deiondre’ Hall From Bears
The Eagles will acquire defensive back Deiondre’ Hall from the Bears, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Chicago will receive a conditional seventh-round pick in 2019.
Hall, a fourth-round pick in 2016, has appeared in 10 games over two seasons with Chicago. Last year, Hall spent the majority of the campaign on injured reserve after suffering a torn hamstring, but was activated in December. While he could conceivably contribute on defense, Hall will likely focus on special teams in Philadelphia, where the team’s depth on defense could limit his overall opportunities.
Hall is suspended for the first game of the regular season, so he won’t immediately count on the Eagles’ roster. He’s signed through the 2019 season, and will collect minimum salaries in each of the next two years.
Bears Extend Khalil Mack
Aaron Donald‘s run as the NFL’s highest-paid defensive player didn’t last long, as new Bears edge rusher Khalil Mack now holds that honor. Mack has inked a six-year, $141MM extension that includes $90MM guaranteed and $60MM at signing, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Chicago sacrificed a bevy of picks to land Mack, and there was never any doubt general manager Ryan Pace would hand his new addition a fresh contract. Mack, of course, held out of Raiders’ camp in search of a new deal, and was dealt after Oakland decided an extension wasn’t in the cards.
The Bears were granted a window to extend Mack after agreeing to a trade in principle. Pace and his team then worked with Mack’s representatives throughout last night and today in order to come to an accord.
By signing after Donald, Mack was able to top the Rams defensive tackle’s $22.5MM annual average by $1MM. The Bears shouldn’t have a problem fitting in Mack’s new contract onto their books, as they rank in the top half of the league in cap space in each of the next two seasons.
Mack, 27, has been a wrecking ball since entering the league as a first-round pick in 2014. A three-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro, Mack has totaled 40.5 sacks over his first four NFL seasons. In 2017, Pro Football Focus graded Mack as the NFL’s seventh-best edge defender.