Vikings, Texans To Meet With Mike Remmers
Offensive lineman Mike Remmers will meet with the Vikings today and Texans tomorrow, reports ProFootballTalk.com (via Twitter). This is the first we’ve heard of these organizations having interest in the tackle, with the Lions being the lone team connected to the veteran (prior to their signing of Ricky Wagner).
After bouncing around the NFL over the past few seasons, Remmer found a home with the Panthers. After having played in six games over his first three seasons in the league, Remmers started all 32 games for Carolina over the past two years. This uptick in productivity certainly helped the free agent’s case, as PFR ranked the 27-year-old as the 10th-best free agent tackle.
In Minnesota, Remmers would join a tackle corps that includes Riley Reiff, Jeremiah Sirles, T.J. Clemmings, Rashod Hill, and Willie Beavers. Meanwhile, the Texans depth chart consists of Duane Brown, Chris Clark, Kendall Lamm, and Josh Walker.
Texans Trade Brock Osweiler To Browns
Whoa! The Texans are trading quarterback Brock Osweiler and a 2018 second-round pick to the Browns in order to move his $16MM salary off the books, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Facebook link). The deal will also see the Browns’ fourth-round pick go to Houston and the Texans’ sixth-round choice to go Cleveland. The Texans have made the deal official, announcing its completion via press release.
This type of deal rarely goes down in the NFL and is more of an NBA or MLB type of transaction. In this swap, the Browns are absorbing an albatross of a deal in order to acquire significant draft compensation. The wheeling and dealing might not stop here: Cleveland is not committed to keeping Osweiler and is likely to try to trade him, sources tell Schefter.
On the other hand, maybe they’ll keep him. The Browns are expected to move on from Robert Griffin III and the Brock Osweiler acquisition should clear the way for that, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
The move clears out tons of cap space for the Texans who are expected to use that money towards signing Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, Schefter writes. The deal saves $10MM in cap space for the Texans and $16MM in cash.
The Texans signed Osweiler to a four-year, $72MM roughly one year ago today with the hope that he would be their QB of the future. That, obviously, did not work out. Osweiler’s deal calls for him to earn $16MM guaranteed this year. After that, he has $18MM and $17MM non-guaranteed salaries in 2018 and 2019.
The Browns came into this week with upwards of $100MM to spend and Schefter writes that they would have struggled to spend all of it. Still, this seems like a very strange way to utilize that space. The only way this trade would make real sense for the Browns, in my view, is if they already have a final leg of the trade set up in which they deal Osweiler for something else of value. As of this writing, the Browns are spending $16MM in cash to acquire a second-round choice and that is not good business.
Cowboys Expect To Trade Tony Romo To Broncos Or Texans
1:31pm: The Broncos are not currently shopping Siemian, James Palmer of NFL.com tweets.
1:27pm: Some “backpedal talk” has emerged regarding a Siemian-to-New York trade, Mortensen tweets. But he adds that Romo remains a trade candidate a day after being expected to be released.
1:07pm: The Cowboys now expect to trade Tony Romo to the Broncos or Texans, sources tell Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Meanwhile, the Broncos are talking with the Jets about trading Trevor Siemian to New York.
A Broncos trade for Romo would be surprising, a source tells Denver7’s Troy Renck (Twitter link). The Broncos have long been connected to Romo but never via trade until today. For more than a month, reports out of Denver have pegged the Broncos as being willing to look at Romo as a UFA.
Wednesday, there was word that the Cowboys would be releasing Romo, allowing him to explore free agency. It turns out that the Broncos and Texans are now willing to acquire him via trade. If a deal goes down, it stands to reason that Romo could agree to restructure his deal in order to make things work for the acquiring club.
Romo, 37 in April, has not been healthy for two full seasons. However, he does have four Pro Bowl selections on his resume. In his last healthy season (2014), Romo completed a league-high 69.9% of his passes with 3,705 yards through the air and 34 touchdowns against just nine interceptions.
The Broncos have been telling everyone that they are willing to go into 2017 with Siemian and Paxton Lynch as their quarterbacks. However, the Romo talk has been strong for weeks now and it sounds like they are looking to bring another star QB to Denver. The Broncos brought in Peyton Manning at a time when the world was writing him off and they might be able to find the same success here with Romo. If they do acquire him, it will be interesting to see whether Romo will be put into an open competition with Lynch or given the starting job from the get-go.
Houston has not been as bullish on a Romo acquisition as Denver has been reported to be. Although neither side has exactly been aggressive, word out of Houston was the team was not going to pursue Romo. The two-time reigning AFC South champions, though, did not get close to what they hoped from Brock Osweiler this season. The Texans’ four-year $72MM contract — one that cannot be realistically removed from the payroll until 2018 — now looks like an albatross after the 6-foot-7 passer could not complete his first Houston season without being benched. He returned to the lineup once Tom Savage sustained a concussion and won a playoff game, but Osweiler did not provide many signs he is the future in Houston.
The Cowboys would take a ~$19MM cap hit this year if they were to trade Romo rather than release him. They could not spread it over two years as they could by designating him a post June 1 cut.
The Jets would like to deal for Siemian but they will look hard at Jay Cutler if they cannot pull off a trade with Denver, Mortensen tweets. Right now, Siemian is Plan A, Cutler is Plan B, and it’s not clear what their Plan C might be if both fall through. The Jets, with limited cap space and little chance of contending in 2017, have very few options to address their vacancy under center.
A seventh-round pick out of Northwestern, Siemian has two years and just $1.3MM left on his rookie contract. He completed 59 percent of his passes and led the Broncos to an 8-6 record. But two injuries sidelined him, providing possible durability queries going forward.
Photo via PFR on Instagram.
Texans Not Interested In Adrian Peterson
The Texans are now the latest team to deny having interest in Adrian Peterson, as the club reportedly has “never once talked about him,” reports Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com. Reports linking Peterson to Houston have all been generated by the Peterson camp, per Barshop.
The Patriots, Seahawks, and Giants have also said they’re not pursuing Peterson, while the Raiders are apparently not as interested in a possible union as Peterson is in joining Oakland. Certainly, price could be a factor — Peterson was set to make $18MM in 2017 under his old Vikings contract, and may have difficulty accepting a steep paycut. But given his contract demands and lack of ability to play in the passing game, it could be awhile before Peterson lands a deal.
Peterson, who was limited to only three games in 2016, ranks as PFR’s No. 32 free agent and No. 2 available running back.
A.J. Bouye To Leave Texans
The A.J. Bouye pursuit looks like it will end up being too rich for the Texans to handle, as Bouye has informed Houston he’ll be signing elsewhere, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reported earlier today (on Twitter) the coveted fifth-year cornerback would likely end up leaving Houston and signing elsewhere once free agency opens. 
This may not mean the Texans won’t be seeing this former UDFA gem often. Each of the Texans’ AFC South brethren are in on Bouye — PFR’s No. 1 UFA — and each has far more cap space than the two-time defending division champions. The Texans come into free agency’s opening with $22MM-plus. That’s at least $25MM less than each of their division rivals.
Bouye broke out in a staggering way last season, becoming Pro Football Focus’ No. 3 overall cornerback after a previously nondescript career. The Texans offered Bouye a multiyear deal before 2016, but he opted to bet on himself and managed to reach free agency on the heels of one of the more notable contract years in recent memory. Houston, though, has made a commitment to its cornerback spot, having Johnathan Joseph and Kareem Jackson on veteran contracts and having drafted Kevin Johnson in the first round.
Latest On Tony Romo
Now set to be a UFA after months of conjecture about a trade that never materialized, Tony Romo might not be entering as an aggressive of a sweepstakes as many envisioned. The teams thought to be his top suitors, the Broncos and Texans, aren’t moving swiftly to discuss the soon-to-be 37-year-old quarterback, Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com reports (on Twitter).
Robinson notes it’s a “more laid-back” pursuit of Romo. He describes the Broncos’ attitude as lukewarm to this prospect while labeling the Texans as potentially out of the running already. The Broncos have yet to have one meeting to discuss a Romo acquisition, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets.
Other teams could make a play for Romo, but Denver and Houston profile as the two most logical landing spots. Romo has eyed both, and the Broncos were reportedly ready to consider the longtime Cowboys passer once he became a free agent while the Texans led the figurative race in the minds of insiders at the Combine, but this could be a slower-developing process.
Denver did draft Paxton Lynch in the first round last year and received competent play from Trevor Siemian in 2016, and Houston still has Brock Osweiler signed to a now-onerous contract. Word out of Houston has been a less bullish stance on a Romo union than what’s come out of Denver. Nothing indicating an aggressive Texans push for Romo has emerged this offseason.
Contract Details: Gholston, Colquitt, Doyle, Davis
Updates on the contracts signed over the past couple of days, mostly via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle…
- Buccaneers defensive end William Gholston‘s contract includes $13.5MM in guaranteed money, as well as a guaranteed base salary of $3MM for the 2017 season (via Twitter). The 25-year-old’s $6.5MM 2018 salary becomes fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2017 league year.
- Defensive tackle Khyri Thornton‘s deal with the Lions is worth $3.3MM with a $325K bonus (Twitter). Thornton will make $700K in 2017, followed by a $1.325MM salary in 2018. He can earn another $12.5K via annual per game active roster bonus, as well as $225K via a weight bonus.
- Punter Britton Colquitt‘s new deal with the Browns is worth $11.2MM and $4.5MM guaranteed (via Twitter). The former fourth-rounder will earn $1.65MM in 2017, followed by salaries of $2.55MM (2018), $2.7MM (2019), and $2.8M (2020).
- Colts tight end Jack Doyle will earn $18.9MM on his next contract (via Twitter). Doyle will earn a guaranteed $1MM next season, followed by a $3.5MM salary in 2018 (guaranteed fifth day of league year) and $5.15MM salary in 2019. The tight end will also earn a $6.5MM roster bonus on March 10th.
- Fullback James Develin earned a $2.45MM contract from the Patriots along with a $300K signing bonus, reports Wilson (Twitter). Develin will earn $800K each year, with a guaranteed $200K base salary for 2017. He can earn another $12.5K via a per-game active annual roster bonus.
- ESPN’s Adam Caplan tweets that tight end Vernon Davis will receive $15MM ($7.5MM guaranteed) from the Redskins. The veteran will make $6MM in the first year of the three-year deal.
- Punter Shane Lechler‘s new deal with the Texans is for one-year and $2MM ($1MM guaranteed), reports Caplan (via Twitter).
Texans To Re-Sign Nick Novak, Shane Lechler
The Texans have agreed to lock up both of their specialists, as the club will re-sign kicker Nick Novak and punter Shane Lechler, tweets Mark Berman of FOX 26.
[RELATED: Texans Interested In Ricky Wagner]
Novak, 35, has spent the past two seasons with the Texans after four years with the Chargers. In 2016, Novak managed to hit 85.4% of his field goal attempts, a tick above his career rate of 82.8%. From 50+ yards, Novak was three-of-six, while Novak also missed three extra points. Novak earned a $885K base salary last year under the terms of a minimum salary benefit contract.
Now 40 years old, Lechler is a seven-time Pro Bowler, but the Texans lost 12.7 points of field position on punts last season. In fact, Houston’s special teams unit finished dead least in DVOA in 2016, earning poor marks in every area except punt returns. Still, the Texans will bring back Lechler — who ranked 16th in net yards per punt — and Novak.
Lions, Texans Interested In Ricky Wagner
After learning that the Vikings and Bears would have some interest in free agent offensive lineman Ricky Wagner, it looks like we can add another pair of teams to the list of potential suitors. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reports (via Kevin Patra of NFL.com) that both the Lions and Texans will “be in play” for the veteran.
Wagner has spent his entire four-year career with the Ravens after being selected in the fifth round of the 2013 draft. The offensive tackle ultimately played in 62 games for Baltimore, including 47 starts. A recent report indicated that the ship “appears to have sailed” regarding Wagner’s return to the Ravens.
The Lions are a natural fit for the 27-year-old, as offensive lineman Riley Reiff is also currently a free agent. Meanwhile, our own Connor Byrne noted that the Texans should seek some offensive line help this offseason. However, he could be out of their price range, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
PFR’s Zach Links ranked Wagner as the second-best offensive tackle available in free agency. The veteran was listed below Andrew Whitworth and above Russell Okung.
Texans Notes: Romo, Savage
Although some around the league reportedly believe the Texans are the best fit for quarterback Tony Romo, other front office members don’t see the fit, according to Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com. If Romo does land in Houston, the Texans could end up trading fellow signal-caller Tom Savage to the 49ers, per Pauline. San Francisco is known to be in the quarterback market, and have been tied to options like Mike Glennon, Jimmy Garoppolo, and Kirk Cousins.
- A.J. Bouye and Stephon Gilmore will ink new contracts and set the market for free agent cornerbacks before Logan Ryan and Dre Kirkpatrick sign deals, reports Pauline. Although Bouye is apparently far apart in talks with the Texans, a feeling exists that he could re-sign with Houston at a cost of $12MM per season. Ryan and Kirkpatrick, PFR’s No. 2 and No. 5 free agent corners, respectively, could earn $10-11MM annually, per Pauline.