Here are the latest reserve/futures contract signings from around the NFL. These deals will go into effect on the first day of the 2018 league year, with players joining their respective clubs’ offseason 90-man rosters:
Indianapolis Colts
According to the NFL’s contractual bargaining agreement, players drafted in rounds three though seven are entitled to raises during the fourth year of their respective rookie contracts. The pay bumps are tied to playing time — a player must have played in 35% of his team’s offensive or defensive snaps in two of his first three seasons, or averaged 35% playing time cumulatively during that period.
If one of these thresholds is met, the player’s salary is elevated to the level of that year’s lowest restricted free agent tender — that figure should be around $1.908MM in 2018. Players selected in the first or second round, undrafted free agents, and kickers/punters are ineligible for the proven performance escalator.
Here are the players who will see their salary rise in 2018 courtesy of the proven performance escalator:
49ers: Trent Brown, T; Eli Harold, LB
Bears: Adrian Amos, S
Bengals: Tyler Kroft, TE; Josh Shaw, DB
Bills: John Miller, G
Broncos: Max Garcia, G; Trevor Siemian, QB
Browns: Duke Johnson, RB
Buccaneers: Kwon Alexander, LB
Cardinals: David Johnson, RB; J.J. Nelson, WR
Chargers: Kyle Emanuel, LB
Chiefs: Chris Conley, WR; Steven Nelson, CB
Colts: Henry Anderson, DE; Mark Glowinski, G; Denzelle Good, OL
Dolphins: Bobby McCain, CB
Eagles: Jay Ajayi, RB; Jordan Hicks, LB
Falcons: Grady Jarrett, DT
Jaguars: A.J. Cann, OL
Lions: Quandre Diggs, CB
Packers: Jake Ryan, LB
Panthers: Daryl Williams, T
Patriots: Trey Flowers, DE; Shaq Mason, G
Raiders: Clive Walford, TE
Rams: Jamon Brown, G
Ravens: Za’Darius Smith, LB
Redskins: T.J. Clemmings, OL; Jamison Crowder, WR
Saints: Tyeler Davison, DT
Seahawks: Tyler Lockett, WR
Steelers: Jesse James, TE
Vikings: Stefon Diggs, WR; Danielle Hunter, DE
OverTheCap.com was essential in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Dean Pees “retired” as the Ravens’ defensive coordinator earlier this year before joining the Titans in the same role on Monday, but Tennessee wasn’t the only club that expressed interest in the veteran coach over the past several weeks. The Lions, who are expected to formally hire Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia following the Super Bowl, also discussed a job offer with Pees, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. Pees and Patricia have a working relationship, as they coached together in New England from 2004-09, so the connection makes sense. Detroit, which is expected to revamps its entire defensive staff once Patricia officially comes on board, is reportedly interested in hiring Boston College defensive line Paul Pasqualoni as its new defensive coordinator.
Andrew Luck‘s getting some quality airport time in during his extensive recovery period from a January 2017 surgery, but his next trip could be a sign he’s nearly ready to return to action.
The Colts quarterback will trek to the Los Angeles area to work with passing guru Tom House, Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com report. The duo reports Luck, who spent time in Europe after being placed on IR last year, is “very close” to a return to throwing.
Luck being set to throw again soon would indicate he does not need another surgery, which would gel with his comments in December about his troublesome right shoulder. The 28-year-old passer said then he doesn’t plan to miss any of the Colts’ offseason. While that seems unrealistic, the passer throwing again come February would appear to put him on track for some offseason participation.
Rapoport and Garafolo note Luck is currently working on his strength and motion, a natural precursor to actual passing work.
More than a year removed from labrum surgery, and on the heels of a lost season, Luck throwing again — coupled with the expected hire of Josh McDaniels — would double as invigorating steps for the Colts’ offense, one that ranked 31st this season. Luck’s presence attracted McDaniels to the Colts, so it stands to reason the incoming HC was pleased with what he was told about Luck’s progress.
A difference between how Pat Shurmur approached his Giants interview helped land him the job. The former Vikings OC conducted his Giants meeting in a fashion that left no doubt the Giants were his first choice, which is something, per Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv, team management couldn’t see in Josh McDaniels or Matt Patricia.
While Vacchiano reports some in the Giants’ organization preferred the two Patriots coordinators to Shurmur “until the very end,” he notes Shurmur left “by far” the strongest first impression on the Giants of the candidates summoned. One of the reasons management was sold on Shurmur was his desire to land the Giants’ job was far more evident than the other finalists’. Vacchiano writes McDaniels appeared to be more interested in the Colts’ job because of Andrew Luck‘s presence, and Patricia’s Lions connection turned out to be very real.
Multiple sources informed Vacchiano that Shurmur was at one point viewed as the favorite in Arizona and that his personality would work better there, but the former Browns coach, per the Giants, was intent on securing the New York job.
Shurmur’s interview, one John Mara ranked as arguably the best he’s seen, resulted in him edging the New England assistants after they’d been viewed as previous favorites. Shurmur also made the strongest connection with Dave Gettleman of the six candidates interviewed, which is interesting given Steve Wilks‘ history with the new Giants GM. Vacchiano notes Jerry Reese and Tom Coughlin did not see eye to eye on key components of the team in their final years together, with a specific disagreement involving the team’s offensive line approach, and adds Mara appeared to indicate Reese and Ben McAdoo weren’t meshing as well as they’d hoped to.
Mara indicated a head coach/GM partnership was critical here, and Shurmur — who made a point of saying how much stock he places in repairing the Giants’ offensive front — appears to be in stride with Gettleman at this point.
Mara previously said he wanted a head coach with previous experience leading a team, and Vacchiano reports Shurmur was “much more willing” to accept his wrongdoings from his first job (with the 2011-12 Browns) than McDaniels (fired midway through his second Broncos season in 2010) was. Shurmur made clear he will hire an offensive coordinator, identifying that as a mistake from his first Cleveland campaign. The Giants ultimately ruled out Wilks because of his lack of experience.
Shurmur also spoke with Eli Manning on the phone on Wednesday from the Senior Bowl and then sat down with the franchise passer in the Giants’ cafeteria on Friday, Paul Schwartz of the New York Post reports. Considering Gettleman’s praise for Manning, and what Shurmur offered about the quarterback’s future at his press conference, it’s starting to look like a strong bet he will be back in New York for his age-37 season.
Schwartz writes Shurmur’s approach with Manning differs from Coughlin’s with Kerry Collins, whom the Giants replaced with Manning in 2004. Coughlin ignored Collins when they saw each other at the facility during the months his and Collins’ tenures overlapped in ’04, Schwartz recalls.
Josh McDaniels had his second interview with the Colts on Friday, and it apparently went well. Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link) that, shortly after the conclusion of Super Bowl LII, Indianapolis will hire McDaniels as its next head coach.
Of course, this hardly qualifies as breaking news. We have known for some time now that McDaniels would be heading to the Colts once New England’s season is over, and the Friday interview was largely just an opportunity for him to sit down with Indianapolis GM Chris Ballard and owner Jim Irsay to make plans for the offseason. As Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com tweets, Irsay was not present for the first interview, so the second summit was needed to get the owner’s official stamp of approval.
McDaniels will now turn his attention towards bringing yet another Super Bowl to New England before he departs. The Patriots, meanwhile, will need to replace not only McDaniels, but DC Matt Patricia as well. Plus, as Schefter points out, Pats special teams coordinator Joe Judge is on an expiring contract, and Ben Volin of the Boston Globe hears that Judge may well join Patricia in Detroit (Twitter link).
Volin writes in a full-length piece that Patriots LB coach Brian Flores — who got some head coaching interest this year — seems like the obvious candidate to replace Patricia as New England’s DC. The real question, then, is who (if anyone) will replace McDaniels.
As Volin notes, head coach Bill Belichick has not had to fill either top coordinator position since 2012, but his history suggests that if he does name a new offensive coordinator, he will promote from within. Indeed, all of Belichick’s coordinators during his 18-year tenure in New England either worked with him at a previous stop or worked their way up inside the Pats’ organization.
During a portion of Belichick’s reign, the team has not even had an official offensive coordinator. McDaniels ran the offense as a quarterbacks coach in 2005, and current Texans head coach Bill O’Brien called plays for the offense during the 2008-09 seasons but did not hold the OC title.
Nonetheless, someone will need to run the offense, regardless of title, and Volin says the only two realistic choices on-staff are assistant quarterbacks coach Jerry Schuplinski and receivers coach Chad O’Shea. Of the two, Volin sees O’Shea as the more likely target, as he has experience in all facets of the game and currently serves as the team’s red zone offense coordinator.
The Cardinals formally announced the hiring of Steve Wilks on Monday afternoon, meaning that all seven of the NFL’s head coaching vacancies are effectively filled. Using PFR’s Head Coaching Search Tracker, here’s a rundown of every candidate who was in the running for the Cardinals, Bears, Lions, Colts, Giants, Raiders, and Titans: