- Patrick Robinson, CB (Colts): Three years, $14MM. $6MM guaranteed. $1.5MM signing bonus. $2MM roster bonus due this Tuesday. $1MM roster bonus due on fifth day of 2017 league year — becomes fully guaranteed if on roster beyond this Friday (all Twitter links).
- The signing of cornerback Patrick Robinson won’t necessarily be the last move the Colts make in free agency before the draft, writes Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star. As Holder notes, GM Ryan Grigson has said the team will “lay in the weeds,” monitoring the market to see if any ideal opportunities arise.
- Georgia outside linebacker Jordan Jenkins has (or has had) workouts and/or visits with the Vikings and Colts, according to Rand Getlin of NFL.com (on Twitter). It was previously reported that Oakland, New England, and New Orleans have all checked out Jenkins.
- USC linebacker/safety Su’a Cravens will visit/work out for the Falcons, Panthers, Colts, Bills, Patriots, Saints, and Chargers, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post (on Twitter).
THURSDAY, 7:49am: Rapoport provides more details on Robinson’s new deal with the Colts, tweeting that the three-year pact is worth $14MM, with $6MM in guarantees.
WEDNESDAY, 7:58pm: Robinson’s three-year deal is worth more than $12MM, Rapoport reports (on Twitter).
7:17pm: The Cowboys were set to pay Robinson $13.5MM on a three-year contract, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. Dallas’ offer contained approximately $5.5MM in guaranteed money, according to Hill. Financial terms of Robinson’s Colts accord haven’t emerged.
7:12pm: Robinson released a statement (via Rand Getlin of NFL.com, on Twitter) stating he never agreed to a deal with another team and didn’t authorize Conner to agree to another franchise’s terms.
6:54pm: Patrick Robinson‘s complex free agency journey will end with the cornerback signing with the Colts, Mike Chappell of IndySportsCentral.com tweets.
It’s a three-year deal for Robinson, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
Paying a visit to both Dallas and Indianapolis, Robinson ultimately opted for the Colts, where he’ll likely join Vontae Davis as a starting cornerback.
Robinson was one of the best corners remaining on the market. The 28-year-old cornerback re-stabilized his career during his one-year stint with the Chargers, starting in 10 games after his career lost some steam with the Saints. When lined up in the slot, Robinson held quarterbacks to the third-worst rating (67.7), per Nathan Jahnke of PFF (on Twitter).
The former first-round pick of the Saints’ finished as Pro Football Focus’ No. 30-ranked corner last season. He and Davis should be an upgrade from the Davis-Greg Toler tandem the Colts deployed for the majority of the past three seasons. Toler, who signed a three-year deal with the Colts in 2013, remains an unrestricted free agent.
The 5-foot-11 Robinson has 10 career interceptions in 43 starts to his credit after joining the then-Super Bowl champion Saints as the No. 32 overall pick in 2010 out of Florida State.
Robinson was reportedly near a deal with the Cowboys before switching agents, with Ron Butler taking over for Kevin Conner. Butler appears to have brokered a Colts accord. The Giants were also interested in Robinson but couldn’t add to the corner’s two-visit week in time to further complicate Robinson’s second free agency venture in two years.
The Cowboys have now visited with three cornerbacks — Robinson, Nolan Carroll and Leon Hall — with the former duo agreeing to sign elsewhere. Hall remains unsigned.
As Chappell points out (via Twitter), Robinson’s interest in coming to the Midwest may have been aided by the Colts hiring Greg Williams, who coached Robinson with the Chargers last season. Robinson spent seven years with the Chargers, many of those years coming under DC John Pagano, before agreeing to join Chuck Pagano‘s staff in January.
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- The Colts are hosting former Arkansas linebacker Myke Tavarres, who transferred to Incarnate Word, on an April 7 visit, Wilson tweets.
- Illinois State running back/wide receiver Marshaun Coprich interviewed with the Colts and Bears, per Pauline. The Colts in particular are high on his skill set.
- Texas Tech wide receiver/kick returner Jakeem Grant had a private workout with the Colts, Getlin tweets. He also has a workout set with the Jets and a team visit coming up with the Cowboys.
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9:46pm: It appears Robinson’s decision to switch agents may indeed push him away from the Cowboys, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Robinson will visit with the Colts tomorrow. Plus, the agreement that Conner negotiated with Dallas may now be off the table entirely, as Moore tweets that the two sides “had an agreement in principle until [Robinson] changed agents.” From the Colts’ perspective, Robinson would represent a quality replacement for Greg Toler, who could depart in free agency.
7:58pm: We heard earlier today that the Cowboys were wrapping up a three-year deal with free agent corner Patrick Robinson and that the deal would be consummated once Robinson resolved his “agent situation.” As it turns out, Robinson has actually switched agents. According to David Moore of The Dallas Morning News, club officials began discussions with Kevin Conner but have now been told that Ron Butler represents Robinson.
Dallas began negotiating with Conner before Robinson’s visit with the team, and the two sides had agreed in principle to the parameters of a three-year deal before Butler advised the Cowboys yesterday that he now represents Robinson. The reasons for the switch are unknown, and it is a little difficult to get a read on how the Dallas media contingent interprets this development.
While Moore couched his report a little pessimistically, opining that Robinson’s switch had thrown a wrench into the negotiations, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says the team has no intention of changing the deal that Conner had negotiated for his former client (Twitter link). Hill, who also authored the above-referenced tweet from this morning indicating that the deal would be completed once Robinson sorts out his agent situation, seems to suggest that, as long as Butler does not try to dramatically alter the contractual framework that has already been put in place, a deal will get done. Todd Archer of ESPN.com, meanwhile, says that the switch is the reason for the delay, and that Robinson was expected to sign yesterday (Twitter links). The fact that Robinson has not yet signed, and the fact that the team had still not met with Butler as of Archer’s tweets several hours ago, indicate that there may still be some work to do.
Robinson, of course, is one of the best free agents still available. After spending the first five years of his career with the Saints, he appeared in all 16 of the Chargers’ games in 2015, including 10 starts, and he put up 49 tackles, an interception, and a forced fumble. His play over 713 defensive snaps with the Bolts earned him a 30th-place ranking among corners at Pro Football Focus among 111 qualifiers. Robinson also played 31.7 percent of the Chargers’ special teams snaps. If he does ultimately wind up with the Cowboys, Brandon Carr‘s future in Dallas would be cast into greater doubt.
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- On drafting a running back, Colts general manager Ryan Grigson said, “We’re not done yet” (Twitter link via Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star). The position could be a priority for the Colts, Holder tweets. Notably, the Colts had the second-worst yards-per-carry average in the league last season (3.6) and have an underwhelming stable of running backs led by Frank Gore, who will turn 33 in May.
- Colts owner Jim Irsay said today that the team will continue to meet with free agents this week, but Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star cautions (via Twitter) that the team won’t be making any major moves.
Speaking today about a potential contract extension for star quarterback Andrew Luck, Colts owner Jim Irsay mentioned July 4 as a target date, tweets Kevin Bowen of Colts.com. According to Bowen though, there’s no real urgency or a hard deadline by which the team wants to have something done.
Luck, the first overall pick in the 2012 draft, earned a Pro Bowl nod and led the Colts to an 11-5 record and a playoff berth in each of his first three seasons in the league. However, injuries derailed his 2015 season. Luck was limited to seven games, and completed just 55.3% of his passes in those contests, with 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. The Colts went 2-5 in Luck’s starts.
Despite the down year, the Colts and Luck are both enthusiastic about figuring out a longer-term arrangement. The standout signal-caller is set to play on his fifth-year option in 2016 if the two sides don’t agree on an extension, but there’s an expectation that something will get done before the season begins, and it could make Luck the highest-paid QB in the league.
It’s not clear why Irsay targeted July 4 as the date by which he would like to have Luck locked up. Franchised players have until July 15 to agree to multiyear extensions with their current teams, but that deadline doesn’t apply to Luck, who wouldn’t be eligible for the franchise tag until 2017. Perhaps Irsay just wants to enjoy a stress-free Fourth of July knowing that his star QB is under contract for the long term.
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