Minor NFL Transactions: 4/10/19
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Re-signed: TE Darrell Daniels (exclusive rights free agent), OL Jeremy Vujnovich (ERFA)
Buffalo Bills
- Re-signed: DE Eddie Yarbrough (ERFA)
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: DT T.J. Barnes, DT Destiny Vaeao
Cincinnati Bengals
- Re-signed: CB Tony McRae (ERFA), G Alex Redmond (ERFA)
Dallas Cowboys
- Waived: G Parker Ehinger, DT Aziz Shittu
Green Bay Packers
- Re-signed: TE Robert Tonyan (ERFA)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: S Cody Brown (AAF)
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: QB John Wolford (AAF)
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: LB Greer Martini (AAF)
New York Jets
- Signed: QB Brandon Silvers (AAF)
- Re-signed: DL Bronson Kaufusi (ERFA), LB Anthony Wint (ERFA)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: S Orion Stewart (AAF)
Cowboys To Host Miles Sanders
- Penn State running back Miles Sanders has been vaulting up draft boards (he currently ranks one spot behind Collier at No. 46 on Jeremiah’s list), and he has a busy schedule ahead of him. Sanders is scheduled to work out for/meet with the Bears, Eagles, Steelers, Ravens, Bills, Cowboys, Falcons, Titans, Bengals, Panthers, Buccaneers, and Colts. In 2018, Sanders’ only season as a starter, he posted 1,274 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on 220 attempts.
DeMarcus Lawrence Notes: Contract, Surgery
After inking a five-year, $105MM extension with the Cowboys, DeMarcus Lawrence met with the media today. The pass-rusher discussed his impending surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder, although he cautioned that he’ll be ready to go for the start of the year.
- Albert Breer of The MMQB has plenty of details regarding Lawrence’s negotiations with the Cowboys. Specifically, the defensive end never had any desire to leave Dallas, a fact that ended up working in the organization’s favor. If the two sides hadn’t agreed to a new deal by the July 15th deadline, Lawrence would have reported to the team on the Saturday before Week 1, and he never intended to sit out the entire season. When negotiations weren’t going well, Lawrence’s agent contacted a pair of unidentified AFC teams about trading for the Pro Bowler, although nothing ever materialized.
Cowboys Part Of Ferguson's 22-Team Tour
- Staying on the subject of draft-eligible ends, Jaylon Ferguson‘s extensive April tour of NFL cities continues. Among the teams on his reported 22-visit tour: the Bills, Giants, Colts, Eagles, Cowboys, Titans and Rams, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). Ferguson met with the Bills on Monday; he will head southeast for his Giants powwow next. His visits with the Colts and Eagles are on tap for this week, with the Cowboys, Titans and Rams meetings are slated for next week. The Bucs and Bengals were already on the Louisiana Tech-produced pass rusher’s docket.
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/8/19
Here are Monday’s minor moves, with more Alliance of American Football players finding NFL homes:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: TE Thomas Duarte (AAF), T Brandon Greene (AAF), WR Rashad Ross (AAF)
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: DE Shakir Soto (AAF)
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: LB Tyrone Holmes (AAF)
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: DE Karter Schult (AAF)
New York Jets
- Signed: WR/KR Valentine Holmes (International Player Pathway Program signee)
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: WR Demornay Pierson-El (AAF)
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: QB Luis Perez (AAF)
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: DT Winston Craig (AAF), LB J.T. Jones (AAF), CB Kameron Kelly (AAF)
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: TE Keith Towbridge (AAF), QB Logan Woodside (AAF)
Washington Redskins
- Signed: G Salesi Uhatafe (AAF)
Latest On DeMarcus Lawrence
DeMarcus Lawrence‘s leverage play delayed his shoulder surgery until this week, with the Pro Bowl defensive end set to go under the knife Wednesday. But it will be a bit before he returns to action.
The recently extended standout will not be ready for the start of training camp and will not play in the preseason, Lawrence confirmed during an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show (via Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram).
Jerry Jones confirmed Lawrence’s recovery will take between four and six months. The Cowboys will open their season in around five months, making it uncertain they will have Lawrence for Week 1. While Lawrence could be ready for camp, if this rehab process goes exceedingly well, it is extremely unlikely he suits up by that point given how long this operation was delayed.
Lawrence has dealt with labrum trouble for years. This surgery will prevent further damage, which could have ended up with Lawrence on IR in 2019.
For what it’s worth, the 26-year-old defender said this shoulder trouble was not on par with the back issues he experienced earlier in his career. His back problems contributed to the Cowboys franchise-tagging him in 2018, but after another season of health (relatively) and double-digit sacks, the team made Lawrence a priority and signed him to a five-year deal.
Demarcus Lawrence Contract Details
On Friday, defensive end Demarcus Lawrence and the Cowboys agreed to a five-year deal worth $105MM, making the defensive lineman one of the highest-paid defenders in the league. 
That deal will include plenty in guaranteed money, according to The MMQB’s Albert Breer (Twitter link). Breer broke the deal down like this:
- 2019: $25MM to sign, $4.6MM roster bonus due on May 1, and $1.5MM base salary.
- 2020: $16.9MM base that is fully guaranteed.
- 2021: $17MM base with an injury guarantee that converts to a full guarantee in March 2020.
- 2022: $19MM base salary.
- 2023: $21MM base salary.
That’s $48MM fully guaranteed, but it is practically $65MM as the team would have to cut him after just one season to avoid paying that extra $17MM. It was reported recently Lawrence was seeking $22.5MM annually, and while he didn’t get that figure, he got close, with an average annual value of $21MM.
The Cowboys reportedly offered Lawrence an AAV of $17MM at the NFL Combine, which his camp countered with at least $20MM, The Athletic’s Calvin Watkins writes. Following the owners meeting, the Cowboys increased their offered to $20MM, but Lawrence’s agent, David Canter, pushed for $22.5MM. Dallas also reportedly originally offered Lawrence a six-year deal, but moved it down to five before the sides agreed on a price tag.
Now that he has signed his deal, Lawrence will undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum. That procedure will take place on Wednesday, which will prevent complete dislocation, Ed Werder tweets. If dislocation happened, Lawrence would be looking at an IR stay, Werder hears.
With the new deal, the Cowboys gained an extra $10MM in cap space, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence Hill tweets. Now that Lawrence’s deal is out of the way, the Cowboys are eyeing new contracts for several players, including Dak Prescott.
In Watkins’ piece, he notes the Cowboys are monitoring talks between Seattle and Russell Wilson before engaging with Prescott about a new deal. Regardless how that deal unfolds, Prescott is a near lock to sign a $100MM-plus contract with Dallas sometime soon.
Details, Reactions To DeMarcus Lawrence Extension
Last night, the Cowboys and star defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence agreed to a lucrative five-year contract extension. The deal is expected to be worth around $105MM ($65MM guaranteed), with others noting that the pass-rusher will definitely earn more than $20MM annually.
Now that the pass-rusher has inked his new contract, he’s set to go under the knife. Albert Breer of TheMMQB reports (via Twitter) that Lawrence will finally undergo shoulder surgery. The procedure is expected to take place next week.
Lawrence has been dealing with a torn labrum for the better part of two years, and recovery time is expected to take three to four months. As a result, the defender will likely be sidelined until training camp.
Let’s check out some more notes pertaining to Lawrence’s new contract…
- Lawrence also received a $25MM signing bonus, reports David Moore of the Dallas Morning News (via Twitter). This probably helped to make up some of the discrepancy between the final contract and Lawrence’s asking price, as the lineman was reportedly seeking a contract that would pay him around $22.5MM per year. As Jon Machota of the Dallas News tweets, Lawrence will ultimately earn $31.1MM in the first year of the deal. For comparison’s sake, Khalil Mack earned $31MM last season.
- According to ESPN’s Todd Archer, the two sides made major strides on Thursday evening. Executive vice president Stephen Jones talked with Lawrence on the phone, and the two parties talked through any monetary issues. Less than 24 hours later, the two sides agreed to a deal.
- NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport says the Lawrence contract is good news for Texans star Jadeveon Clowney and Seahawks standout Frank Clark (Twitter link). The reporter believes the two players now have parameters set for any future extensions, noting that the franchised pass-rushers could also expect to receive $20MM annually.
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/5/19
We’ve got a bunch of minor moves today, with a handful of players being signed from the recently defunct AAF:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: G Kitt O’Brien, C Parker Collins (both from AAF)
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: WR Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: P Kasey Redfern
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: OL Michael Dunn (AAF)
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: DB Duke Thomas, DB Derron Smith
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: DE Alex Barrett, S Jordan Richards
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: C J.C. Hassenauer, DB Jack Tocho (both from AAF)
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DE Damontre Moore (AAF)
Washington Redskins
- Signed: DE Andrew Ankrah (AAF)
Cowboys Extend DeMarcus Lawrence
The DeMarcus Lawrence contract drama is about to be over. We heard earlier today he was nearing a deal with the Cowboys, and now it’s more or less official.
Lawrence and the Cowboys have an agreement in place that will pay him more than $100MM over the course of a five-year extension, sources told Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL Network (Twitter link). Rapoport writes that they’ve “agreed on basic parameters of a deal.” Garafolo posted in a follow-up tweet that Lawrence will indeed be getting more than $20MM annually. Rapoport soon noted in a tweet that it’ll be worth $105MM total.
Just a few days ago we heard talks were at an “impasse,” so things clearly progressed quickly. Last month, Lawrence reportedly upped his asking price to $22.5MM annually, and it sounds like he got close to it. Cowboys exec Stephen Jones had previously said that Lawrence’s desire to get paid like Aaron Donald and Von Miller was holding up negotiations, and he indicated that the Cowboys wouldn’t cave from their asking price.
Lawrence might not be getting as much as the top couple of guys, but he apparently is breaking a record. Lawrence “will get the most money in Year 1 for a defensive player ever,” Garafolo tweets. The previous record, Garafolo notes, was held by Khalil Mack, who got $31MM in the first year of his deal.
It also sounds like a huge portion of Lawrence’s contract will be guaranteed. Albert Breer of SI.com chimed in a with a tweet noting the deal “will set new benchmarks for defensive players in percentage of a multi-year deal fully guaranteed, and percentage in total guarantees.” Todd Archer of ESPN.com later tweeted that $65MM of the deal will be guaranteed.