2017 NFL Draft Order Through Most Of Week 14
The final month of the regular season will dictate the playoff futures for teams like the Cowboys, Patriots, Chiefs, and Raiders. For other teams, the postseason is a statistical impossibility. Already, the Jets, Jaguars, Browns, Rams, Bears, and 49ers have been mathematically eliminated. The Chargers, Saints, Panthers, Eagles, Bengals, and Cardinals are not technically out of it, but their chances are remote.
Here’s where those teams and the others not currently ticketed for the playoffs stand in the draft order (Note – Ties are broken by strength of schedule):
- Browns 0-13
- 49ers 1-12
- Jaguars 2-11
- Bears 3-10
- Rams 4-9 (pick belongs to Titans)
- Jets 4-9
- Panthers 5-8
- Chargers 5-8
- Saints 5-8
- Eagles (pick belongs to Browns) 5-8
- Cardinals 5-7-1
- Bengals 5-7-1
- Bills 6-7
- Colts 6-7
- Titans 7-6
- Vikings (pick belongs to Eagles) 7-6
- Packers 7-6
- Redskins 7-5-1
- Ravens 7-5 (Note – The Ravens play their Week 14 game tonight against the Patriots.)
- Dolphins 8-5
Strength of schedule via SB Nation.
Jaguars Put Julius Thomas, Jared Odrick On IR
Two 2015 free agent signings who haven’t quite panned out to the Jaguars’ liking will spend the rest of the season on injured reserve, with the Jags shelving Julius Thomas and Jared Odrick, Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union tweets.
Offensive lineman Luke Bowanko and running back Bronson Hill will ascend to the 53-man roster, Bowanko from the PUP list and Hill from the practice squad, respectively, per O’Halloran.
Sidelined with a back injury, Thomas has not played since Nov. 20 and has not delivered the kind of production the Jaguars envisioned when they signed him to one of the top tight end contracts in the league at five years and $46MM. Of course, not much has gone right for the Jags this season, and Thomas isn’t the only offensive talent to underperform. The sixth-year pass-catcher has 30 receptions for 281 yards and four touchdowns in nine games.
Odrick, who will miss the rest of the season due to a spate injuries, inked a five-year deal worth $42.5MM last year and also hasn’t lived up to the contract. He has one sack this season in six games. A former Dolphins first-round pick, Odrick started every game in 2015 but has seen numerous maladies sidetrack him during this his seventh season. Triceps, quadriceps, ankle and shoulder ailments plagued Odrick, who profiles as a potential cap casualty in the spring.
The Jags can save $8.5MM off their 2017 cap by cutting Odrick in March. His contract structured as a two-year deal with an escape hatch after 2016, Jacksonville would not take on any dead money by shedding it before the ’17 league year begins.
Thomas, meanwhile, would bring a $3.6MM dead-money charge. The former Broncos tight end who came to north Florida having back-to-back seasons of 12 touchdown receptions has totaled nine in two years with the Jags, and the injury troubles that induced the former 2011 fourth-round pick to miss 28 games in four Denver seasons have continued in Jacksonville. Although this season didn’t bring the kind of ankle trouble Thomas experienced during his first five, his deal will likely be a discussion point for what is almost certain to be a revamped Jags decision-making staff in 2017.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/7/2016
Today’s practice squad moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: CB Charles Gaines
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: S Justin Currie
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: S Stefan McClure
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: TE E.J. Bibbs
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: OT Rob Crisp
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: CB Brandon Dixon
San Diego Chargers
- Signed: CB Randall Evans
Jaguars Waive LB Arthur Brown
The Jaguars announced today that they’ve waived linebacker Arthur Brown, while they’ve filled the open roster spot by promoting fellow linebacker Sean Porter from their practice squad.
[RELATED: Jacksonville Jaguars Depth Chart]
Brown, a former second-round pick of the Ravens, has essentially been recast as a special teams player at this point in his career, as he’d fallen out of favor in Baltimore before being waived this summer, and hadn’t contributed on the defensive side of the ball for Jacksonville this season. The 26-year-old had only played on six defensive snaps for the Jags in 2016 (while seeing time on nearly 85% of the club’s ST plays), and had only been on the field for 10 total defensive snaps during his final two seasons with the Ravens.
Porter, 25, was also a relatively high draft choice (fourth round, Bengals, 2013), but has only played in one game thus far in his career. Waived by Cincinnati in November 2015, Porter has spent much of the time since on the Jaguars’ practice squad. He’ll likely fill a role similar to that of Brown, playing on special teams while serving as depth behind Telvin Smith, Paul Posluszny, Myles Jack, and Dan Skuta.
NFL Spending By Team Over Last Four Seasons
The NFLPA has released the official data on team spending over the last four seasons. The Collective Bargaining Agreement stipulates that each team must utilize 89% of the salary cap over two four-year periods, 2013-16 and 2017-20. As previously reported, the Raiders are the only team that has yet to satisfy that requirement for the closing period. The CBA also requires the league, as a whole, to spend 95% of the cap, in cash, for the same period. That requirement has been easily met.
Here is the full rundown of every team’s spending in declining order:
Philadelphia Eagles – $613,928,134
Denver Broncos – $587,712,791
Seattle Seahawks – $584,305,975
Green Bay Packers – $583,138,740
Miami Dolphins – $577,975,260
Kansas City Chiefs – $575,541,332
Buffalo Bills – $573,647,850
Chicago Bears – $568,301,610
Cincinnati Bengals – $567,289,411
Baltimore Ravens – $562,425,698
San Diego Chargers – $562,232,116
Indianapolis Colts – $556,335,689
Atlanta Falcons – $550,614,572
New York Giants – $543,787,033
Arizona Cardinals – $543,327,538
Los Angeles Rams – $541,957,711
New Orleans Saints – $539,836,498
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $539,736,102
Minnesota Vikings – $539,162,454
New York Jets – $533,151,519
Washington Redskins – $532,545,662
Pittsburgh Steelers – $530,698,171
Detroit Lions – $530,210,549
Tennessee Titans – $524,505,256
Dallas Cowboys – $523,033,036
Houston Texans – $517,212,166
Jacksonville Jaguars – $516,908,734
Cleveland Browns – $516,158,864
San Francisco 49ers – $514,488,198
New England Patriots – $500,083,836
Carolina Panthers – $495,149,346
Oakland Raiders – $491,433,408
Jaguars, Tom Coughlin Mutually Interested In Reunion
- The Jaguars will likely fire head coach Gus Bradley at the end of the season, and the team is expected to reach out to former head coach Tom Coughlin, who is reportedly interested in returning to Jacksonville. It is unclear if the Jags would want the 70-year-old Coughlin to take over as head coach, but he has appeal to the team in various capacities. Coughlin, who is working in the NFL office this season, was pursuing coaching openings a year ago.
Former Jag Brandon Marshall On Facing Ex-Team
- Sunday’s matchup between Jacksonville and Denver might seem relatively uninteresting, but not to Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall. The Jaguars chose Marshall in the fifth round of the 2012 draft and ended up cutting him three different times before he joined the Broncos in September 2013. Marshall hasn’t forgotten about his inability to stick with the Jags. “I’ve been waiting for this moment for a long time,” he told Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post. “The scouts, the executives, some coaches, some players, there’s a lot of people still back there from my time. That gives me a little extra push, a little extra umph. It puts a little extra sauce on this game.” Latching on with Denver has worked out wonderfully for Marshall, who signed a sizable extension with the Broncos over the summer on the heels of a strong couple of years – including a Super Bowl-winning campaign last season. He ranks as Pro Football Focus’ 16th-best linebacker out of 85 qualifiers this year.
Broncos Offered Malik Jackson Five-Year Deal
The Broncos let defensive end Malik Jackson walk in free agency, but they didn’t do so without putting up a fight. Speaking today to reporters, including Cameron Wolfe of the Denver Post (Twitter link), Jackson said he declined a five-year, $53MM contract offer from Denver before the start of free agency. Jackson went on to sign with the Jaguars for six years and $85.5MM.
[RELATED: Broncos Extend Darian Stewart]
Jackson, 26, admitted that had the Broncos offered the same contract prior to the 2015 season, he likely would have accepted, but acknowledged that “things changed” as the campaign progressed. For one, Denver extended fellow defensive end Derek Wolfe on a four-year, $36.7MM deal, and Jackson “thought [he] would demand a few more dollars than [Wolfe],” tweets Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post. Second, Jackson played extremely well, grading as the league’s No. 16 interior defender per Pro Football Focus, and skyrocketed to the No. 2 overall position on PFR’s Top 2016 Free Agents.
Of course, while it’s difficult to compare the specifics of Denver’s offer to Jacksonville’s offer without knowing the exact nature and structure of the Broncos’ proposal, it’s safe to say that Jackson made the right decision in heading to the free agent market. He scored $31.5MM guaranteed from the Jaguars, and he’ll earn $44.5MM in the first three years of the deal — both figures would have been extremely difficult for Denver to match given their spate of 2016 free agents.
Jackson, for his part, has held up his end of the deal thus far, ranking as PFF’s 24th-best interior defender on the season. However, the Broncos are getting along without him, as they’ve posted a 7-4 record while fielding the NFL’s No. 2 defense by DVOA. The Jaguars, on the other hand, are last in the AFC South with a 2-9 mark, and despite Jackson’s contributions, their defense ranks only 16th in DVOA.
Jaguars Audition Three
- The Jaguars tried out three wide receivers on Monday, Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union tweets. DeAndre Carter (Sacramento State), Cayleb Jones (Arizona), and Mekale McKay (Cincinnati) all auditioned for Jacksonville. Jaguars receiver Allen Hurns left Sunday’s game with a hamstring injury and didn’t return, so Jacksonville could be looking to add a bit of depth in the meantime.
NFL Teams Showing Interest In Rugby Stars
Last year, rugby star Jarryd Hayne signed with the 49ers and tried his hand at the NFL. His stay in the league was short, but there are now a pair of rugby standouts that are hoping to follow his footsteps. Australian Rugby League players Valentine Holmes and Jason Taumalolo tried out for teams on Saturday, as Howard Balzer of BalzerFootball.com tweets.
The Bills, Bears, Browns, Packers, Colts, Jaguars, Chiefs, Rams, Jets, Eagles, Chargers, Seahawks, Cardinals, and the 49ers were all in attendance for the workout (Twitter link). Taumalolo, 23, and Holmes, 21, ran passing routes, underwent speed and agility tests, and ran the 40-yard dash, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. Taumalolo hears that he could project to fullback, tight end, or linebacker while Holmes was pegged as a wide receiver or safety.
At least four NFL teams expressed interest in taking a second look at the duo, the Australian Associated Press reports. Scouts from the Packers, Eagles, Jets, Chiefs and Cardinals appeared to be the most interested. The AAP writes that both players intend on fulfilling their NRL contracts for 2017, but one has to imagine that they could change their minds if presented with an NFL offer.