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Minor NFL Transactions: 3/16/23

March 16th, 2023 at 9:39pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor NFL transactions:

Baltimore Ravens

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

San Francisco 49ers

There’s some long snapper news to pass along! Cardona will be returning to New England for his ninth season with the organization, making him the Patriots’ second-longest tenured player (behind Matthew Slater). Per ESPN’s Mike Reiss (on Twitter), Cardona got a four-year deal with a $1MM signing bonus, with that latter value being “an important marker” for the veteran to clear.

Meanwhile, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tweets that Moore will be getting a two-year, $2.5MM deal. The long snapper was non-tendered by Baltimore yesterday but ultimately re-upped with the team on a multiyear deal. Per Zrebiec, Moore received interest from other teams but wanted to stick around Baltimore. The 30-year-old has been with the Ravens since 2020 and earned a second-team All-Pro nod in 2022.

Broncos Interested In C.J. Gardner-Johnson

March 16th, 2023 at 11:45am CST by Sam Robinson

Sean Payton‘s first free agency period in Denver has produced a few big-ticket signings. The former Saints coach is now looking into one of his former players for what would be a fourth major move as Broncos HC.

The Broncos are one of the teams interested in C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 reports (on Twitter). The Eagles wanted to retain the fifth-year defensive back ahead of free agency, but he hit the market and is fielding interest.

Philadelphia has managed to bring back longtime defensive stalwarts Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham, along with James Bradberry. Late Wednesday night, they pumped the breaks on cutting Darius Slay as well. Slay’s monster cap number ($26.1MM) is still on Philly’s payroll. Until a new number surfaces, the contract-year cornerback’s status will remain in question. But these moves could impact the Eagles’ aim to re-sign Gardner-Johnson.

The Eagles traded for Gardner-Johnson just before last season, acquiring the ex-Saints slot cornerback and moving him to safety. Gardner-Johnson proceeded to tie for the NFL interceptions lead, notching six thefts despite missing five games. The Eagles are understandably keen on ensuring the 2022 trade investment does not bolt after one season. The team has lost its other starting safety, Marcus Epps, along with Javon Hargrave, T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White from its Super Bowl LVII-qualifying defense.

Payton coached Gardner-Johnson for three seasons, stationing the renowned trash talker in the slot. Gardner-Johnson functioned as New Orleans’ primary slot defender for multiple seasons. Months after Payton’s New Orleans exit, the former fourth-round pick could not come to terms with the Saints on an extension. That led to the trade. CJGJ will not come cheap, being one of the top options left available. He will not turn 26 until December.

Denver’s most lucrative defensive contract resides at Gardner-Johnson’s position, with Justin Simmons being the league’s sixth-highest-paid safety. Simmons, who also missed five games last season, shared the 2022 INT lead with Gardner-Johnson. The Broncos have not re-signed Kareem Jackson, a three-year starter for the team but a player who is going into his age-35 season, and have used 2021 draftee Caden Sterns as their backup. Veteran K’Waun Williams remains under contract for the Broncos in the slot.

Broncos Sign T Mike McGlinchey

March 16th, 2023 at 8:58am CST by Sam Robinson

MARCH 16: One of the top free agents to hit the market, McGlinchey did well to secure an agreement that features a virtual three-year guarantee. In addition to the veteran right tackle’s 2023 and ’24 base salaries being fully guaranteed, Albert Breer of SI.com notes his 2025 salary ($17.5MM) will become locked in on if he is still on Denver’s roster in March 2024. This is not an uncommon structure, but it essentially will bring McGlinchey’s full guarantee number up to $52.5MM.

While practical guarantees are present in other linemen’s contracts, no current right tackle deal included more than $43MM guaranteed at signing. Payton signed off on that deal (Ramczyk’s) as well. The Broncos have spent a decade trying to fill this position; they are paying up to do so.

MARCH 13: The Broncos are making an all-out effort to upgrade their offensive line Monday. Shortly after agreeing to terms with Ben Powers, they are signing another big fish. Right tackle Mike McGlinchey is joining the team, Dianna Russini of ESPN.com tweets.

A five-year 49ers starter, McGlinchey hit the legal tampering period as one of the market’s top available players. The Broncos’ right tackle spot has become one of the league’s fastest-moving carousel positions. Denver has used a different right tackle starter in Week 1 in each of the past 10 seasons. While that streak will hit 11, the team is spending big bucks to ensure McGlinchey stops it for a while.

49ers GM John Lynch said he expected McGlinchey to have a robust market that would price himself out of San Francisco. With Trent Williams attached to the NFL’s top offensive line contract, McGlinchey will collect his cash elsewhere. He will join Garett Bolles in Denver, which will soon have top-10 contracts devoted to left tackle and right tackle. As of midday Monday, the Broncos are the only team that can say that.

PFR ranked McGlinchey as the market’s top right tackle, though this was a strong market at the position. The Broncos are choosing McGlinchey over the likes of Jawaan Taylor and Kaleb McGary, but the team’s dire issues at right tackle will prompt a big payment. It is a five-year, $87.5MM deal for McGlinchey, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. At $17.5MM per year, McGlinchey becomes the NFL’s fourth-highest-paid right tackle. Sean Payton authorized the top right tackle contract — Ryan Ramczyk‘s — back in 2021. Payton is continuing his O-line-centric focus in Denver.

In New Orleans, Payton continually devoted high picks to his offensive line. Extensions followed. The Broncos will now have two hired guns up front to join Bolles and Quinn Meinerz. While Denver’s center position is uncertain, it will be difficult for the team — which has some needs that are not on the O-line — to devote too much capital here. Lloyd Cushenberry is entering a contract year and is coming off an injury-abbreviated season.

McGlinchey, 28, has been one of the NFL’s top run-blocking tackles in recent years. The former top-10 pick who came to San Francisco after being Notre Dame’s left tackle, McGlinchey rated fifth in ESPN’s run block win rate last season. He started every game for the 49ers in 2022, bouncing back from a quad injury that ended his 2021 season early. McGlinchey is going into his age-28 season. The Broncos are betting on him to remain an upper-crust right tackle into his 30s. They have tried repeatedly to staff this position but have failed, with the biggest whiff coming via the four-year deal they gave Ja’Wuan James back in 2019.

The 49ers recently re-signed Colton McKivitz, giving them a much cheaper option to potentially succeed McGlinchey opposite Williams. Jaylon Moore also serves as an option for San Francisco, which has now lost five-year starting O-linemen — McGlinchey and guard Laken Tomlinson — in back-to-back offseasons.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/15/23

March 15th, 2023 at 7:46pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor transactions:

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

Washington Commanders

Smith got a two-year deal from Denver that can max out at $5.5MM, per Mike Klis of 9News in Denver (via Twitter). Smith got a $1.4MM signing bonus to join the Broncos, per Troy Renck of Denver7 (via Twitter). After finishing last in kicker return average in 2022, the Broncos should get a bump from Smith, who averaged 23.9 yards on his 40 kickoff returns for Houston over the past two years.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/14/23

March 14th, 2023 at 9:51pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

New England Patriots

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Broncos To Sign RB Samaje Perine

March 14th, 2023 at 4:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

Seeking Javonte Williams insurance, the Broncos are looking to another team’s backup. Former Bengals running back Samaje Perine is signing a two-year Denver deal, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.

The Broncos are giving the former Joe Mixon backup a two-year, $7.5MM deal that includes an additional $1MM in incentives. Perine will join his fourth NFL team and an offense in transition. With Williams recovering from ACL surgery, an opportunity at a bigger role may exist in Denver.

Backing up Mixon both in Cincinnati and at Oklahoma, Perine effectively filled in for the starter last season. The 240-pound back scored four touchdowns in a two-game starter span last year, helping the Bengals to wins over the Steelers and Chiefs. He totaled 21 carries for 106 yards and a score over the eventual Super Bowl champions.

This pickup is also interesting due to the number of young starters available for the Broncos. While the Dolphins brought back both Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson and the Eagles inked Rashaad Penny, the rest of the starters who were not franchise-tagged remain on the market. Kareem Hunt, Miles Sanders, Devin Singletary, Jamaal Williams, D’Onta Foreman, Damien Harris and David Montgomery are available. It does not appear each will command starter-level money, with a supply-and-demand issue favoring teams, so the Broncos diving in early on Perine either points to some conviction from team brass or an intent not to devote much money to the Williams insurance slot.

That said, Perine only has 401 career carries on his odometer. Although he is headed into an age-28 season, the light workload should benefit him. And the Broncos did operate aggressively on Day 1 of the legal tampering period, giving big deals to Mike McGlinchey, Ben Powers and Zach Allen. Sean Payton favorite Latavius Murray might also be on the docket; 9News’ Mike Klis confirms Murray is still a possibility (Twitter link). The Broncos may still be on the lookout for a back with more pass-catching upside, though Perine did finish with a career-high 38 receptions for 287 yards last season.

Williams suffered a torn ACL in Week 4 of season, and it is not certain he will be back to start next season. Perine, then, moves into position to start in that case. Barring an agreement with one of the other UFA backs, the Broncos should be considered likely to add to their running back room during the middle rounds of the draft.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/13/23

March 13th, 2023 at 11:06pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s tender decisions from around the NFL:

RFAs

Tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Did not tender:

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/13/23

March 13th, 2023 at 10:59pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s minor moves:

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

 

Nixon was a first-team All-Pro returner for the Packers this year. He’s signed to a new one-year deal with a maximum value of $6MM, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

Wharton’s new one-year deal is reportedly worth $2.03MM, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. The contract has a guaranteed amount of $850,000 consisting of a $500,000 signing bonus and $350,000 of the base salary (worth $1.01MM total).

Broncos To Sign DL Zach Allen

March 13th, 2023 at 7:50pm CST by Sam Robinson

A couple of Vance Joseph’s former Broncos charges are still in place in Denver (Justin Simmons, Josey Jewell), but the new DC will bring one of his Cardinals pieces with him. The Broncos are signing Zach Allen to a three-year deal, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports tweets.

"<strongAllen is set to join the Broncos on a contract worth $45.75MM and $32.5MM fully guaranteed, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. This news should lead to Dre’Mont Jones relocating, given what the Broncos have done in free agency Monday. The Broncos have kept in touch with Jones, but with the Browns viewed as the favorites, it is logical for the AFC West team to give Joseph a talented D-lineman he coached in Arizona.

Three of PFR’s top 20 free agents are now pledged to the Broncos, who are signing Allen, Mike McGlinchey and Ben Powers to headline a Denver day dedicated to line fortifications. The Allen addition should bring a seamless transition for the former Cardinals draftee. The Cards drafted Allen in the 2019 third round, months after they hired Joseph as DC, and he became a key contributor — particularly during a contract year alongside J.J. Watt.

Allen, 25, led all defensive linemen with eight pass deflections last season, teaming with Watt to form a strong interior D-line duo for a last-place team. The Boston College product will undoubtedly step into the same position in Joseph’s 3-4 scheme in Denver. Allen finished with 5.5 sacks and 20 QB hits last season. He recovered three fumbles and intercepted a pass in 2021, coming along after taking a bit to break into Arizona’s lineup on a full-time basis.

Shortly after dealing Bradley Chubb to the Dolphins, the Broncos indicated Jones was a priority to re-sign. The team negotiated with Jones up to the franchise tag deadline, but the former third-round pick understandably did not want to re-sign before testing the market. The three-year Denver starter is one of the top players left on the board, and although he said before free agency he wanted to stay in Denver, it looks like the sides will split up after four years. Allen can safely be labeled Denver’s Jones replacement.

The Jones-for-Allen swap will still leave the Broncos with standout D-tackle D.J. Jones returning, and Denver also brought back linebacker Alex Singleton on Monday. The team released Graham Glasgow, Ronald Darby and Chase Edmonds to clear out the cap space necessary to enable this Monday spending spree.

Broncos To Re-Sign LB Alex Singleton

March 13th, 2023 at 6:09pm CST by Sam Robinson

During a woeful Broncos season, Alex Singleton became a pleasant surprise. The team’s new coaching staff intends to bring him back. The veteran linebacker is re-signing with the Broncos, Mike Klis of 9News tweets.

Denver is keeping Singleton on a three-year deal worth $18MM, per Klis, who adds $9MM is guaranteed. Singleton will earn $5.49MM in base salary this year, Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 tweets, adding that his other $4MM guaranteed comes via signing bonus. This contract is fairly similar to the deal the Broncos gave Josey Jewell to start free agency last year, and the two will stay together as a second-level pair on Denver’s defense.

While Jewell has a history with new Denver DC Vance Joseph, this will be new territory for Singleton, who joined the Broncos on a low-level pact in 2022. The Eagles non-tendered Singleton as an RFA, but he made his 2022 season count. As a result, Singleton will collect a nice payday before he turns 30. Although Singleton debuted in 2019, he will turn 30 in December. That certainly raised the stakes for this particular free agency journey.

The former Eagles regular dropped a 163-tackle season during his Broncos debut. That included two games with at least 20 stops. Little went right for the Broncos last season, but Singleton was one of the key reasons the team’s defense stayed afloat despite a run of injuries and the midseason Bradley Chubb trade.

A former UDFA out of Montana State, Singleton has churned out high tackle totals for years. He put together 120- and 137-tackles seasons in 2020 and ’21 in Philadelphia, respectively, but the Eagles punted on keeping the Division I-FCS product via the low-end RFA tender. Pro Football Focus ended up slotting Singleton 10th among off-ball ‘backers last season. PFF did not view Singleton as a coverage liability and assessed both he and Jewell (128 tackles in 13 games) as top-30 off-ball linebackers last season.

Spending big on their offensive line today and having Russell Wilson tied to the second-most lucrative quarterback contract, the Broncos are keeping costs low at linebacker. Jewell and Singleton are tied to $5.5MM and $6MM in terms of AAV.

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