AFC Notes: Clary, Johnson, Archer, Pats
During Chargers rookie minicap, third-rounder Chris Watt was working at right guard, “the same position of Jeromey Clary, who is to make $4.55 million in total compensation in 2014,” writes ESPN’s Eric D. Williams. “Watt lining up at right guard probably is not a coincidence.”
This comes on after an ESPN Insider piece (subscription required) about veterans whose jobs are in jeopardy in which Nathan Jahnke put the magnifying glass on Clary: “Thanks to the drafting of D.J. Fluker in 2013, Clary was moved from right tackle to right guard last year. The move didn’t work out well for Clary, who had the third-lowest run-block rating for all guards per PFF. In addition, the Chargers’ running backs averaged 4.6 yards per carry when running to the left compared to 3.6 yards per carry when running to the right, and it wouldn’t be surprising if Clary had something to do with that large difference.”
Here’s a few more AFC news and notes:
- Any rumors of Andre Johnson being reunited via trade with Gary Kubiak in Baltimore were quashed by ESPN’s Jamison Hensley.
- Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com passed along a few Patriots tidbits: The team will carry three quarterbacks (Tom Brady, Jimmy Garoppolo and Ryan Mallett), but Mallett is expected to depart via free agency at year’s end; Shane Vereen could earn a contract extension with a healthy, productive season; and 2013 fourth-rounder Josh Boyce, who struggled with the “mental aspect” as a rookie, will “compete for the kickoff return job while also vying for a role as a No. 3-5 option on the depth chart.”
- Free agent linebacker James Anderson, who started all 16 games for the Bears last season, tried out for the Patriots, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter).
- On third-rounder Dri Archer, Steelers GM Kevin Colbert told Post-Tribune writer Alan Robinson, “We think we got the fastest player in the draft.” The Steelers hope to take advantage of Archer’s versatility, according to Colbert, who says the rookie could be used as a kick returner, in the slot, in the backfield and maybe as an H-back.
- When asked about potential surprise cuts depending on how many rookies/young players make the Jaguars, ESPN’s Michael DiRocco mentioned Tyson Alualu, Denard Robinson and Ricky Stanzi as bubble players.
- With the Jets adding Daryl Richardson via waivers, Mike Goodson is not expected to be with the team, reports Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News (via Twitter).
AFC Notes: Bills, Ravens, Richardson, Broncos
The Bills made one of the biggest splashes during the first round of last week’s draft when they traded up to fourth overall to land wide receiver Sammy Watkins. Although the team was able to land its man at No. 4, Buffalo made efforts to move up even higher than that, as director of player personnel Jim Monos confirmed in a video on the club’s website.
“We went with Houston right off the bat,” Monos said. “We tried to go to No. 1. They weren’t having it. They knew who they wanted, so we started working our way right down.”
The video hints that the Bills also spoke to the Jaguars about the possibility of moving up to No. 3, since Jacksonville’s target at that spot was unclear. As for the Rams, Curtis Crabtree of Pro Football Talk notes that there are strong signals Buffalo spoke to them about the No. 2 pick as well.
Here’s more from around the AFC:
- Ohio State quarterback Kenny Guiton headlines the invitees at the Bills‘ rookie minicamp, notes Mike Rodak of ESPN.com in a pair of tweets.
- The Ravens are considering placing a waiver claim on running back Daryl Richardson, who was cut by the Rams yesterday, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com.
- While some teams are auditioning dozens of players during this week’s rookie minicamp, the Broncos just have eight invitees in camp, hoping to earn roster spots, as Mike Klis of the Denver Post details.
Minor Moves: Pats, Jaguars, Colts, Rams
It’s been a busy week for NFL transactions, with teams looking to get their rosters in order for upcoming rookie minicamps. Here are a few of today’s minor moves, including multiple cuts of players who were signed just days ago:
- The Patriots have cut tight end Tyler Beck and long snapper Charley Hughlett, the team announced today in a press release. Neither player had a very long stint on New England’s roster — Hughlett signed less than two months ago, while Beck, who received a $1.5K signing bonus, just inked his deal on Monday.
- Quarterback Matt Scott has been waived by the Jaguars, according to John Oehser of Jaguars.com (via Twitter). Scott spent training camp with Jacksonville last season, and was on the club’s practice squad during the season.
- The Colts have parted ways with a pair of players, cutting tackle Erik Pike and cornerback Darius Polk, according to Craig Kelley of Colts.com (via Twitter). Both rookies were part of the club’s undrafted free agent class.
- The Rams cleared a roster spot by waiving offensive lineman Graham Pocic today, a source tells Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link).
Minicamp Invites: Vikings, Cowboys, Jaguars
We’ve been diligently documenting all the undrafted free agents signed by NFL teams in the wake of the draft, but those players – and this year’s draftees – won’t be the only participants in upcoming rookie minicamps. Other undrafted rookies and veteran free agents will get a chance to audition for roster spots on teams around the league. Here are a few updates on those players participating in minicamps on a tryout basis:
- Several local players, including former Minnesota tackle Roland Johnson, are participating in the Vikings‘ minicamp this week, writes Mark Craig of the Star-Tribune.
- The Cowboys signed 24 rookie free agents to deals earlier this week, and the team will also have another 15 invitees in camp auditioning for roster spots, according to Rainer Sabin of the Dallas Morning News, who provides the full list of players.
- 27 minicamp invitees will be working out for the Jaguars, tweets John Oehser of Jaguars.com. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun adds (via Twitter) that veterans Brian Price, Antoine Caldwell, and Greg Childs will be among the players in attendance.
- While he doesn’t yet have a full list of participants in the Seahawks‘ minicamp, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times adds a few names to Seattle’s group of players trying out.
2014’s Most Balanced And Unbalanced Drafts
Teams entered last week’s NFL draft with many different positions and areas they planned to focus on, but depending on how the draft played out, many clubs didn’t end up addressing all their needs. For instance, few would have guessed heading into the draft that neither the Panthers nor the Ravens would come out of the weekend having added an offensive tackle.
Whether intentional or not, a handful of teams ended up specifically focusing on one area of the ball in the draft, selecting far more offensive players than defensive players, or vice versa. Listed below are the teams who had the most offensive-heavy drafts, teams who had defensive-heavy drafts, and the clubs who managed to perfectly balance their picks. Let’s check out the lists….
Most offensive-heavy drafts:
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6 offense, 0 defense): After spending big to add defensive end Michael Johnson and cornerback Alterraun Verner in free agency, the Buccaneers were the only NFL team not to draft at least one defensive player. Instead, the club focused on adding weapons for new quarterback Josh McCown, including wide receiver Mike Evans and tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins.
- Jacksonville Jaguars (6 offense, 3 defense): It wasn’t until they drafted their fifth player, in the fourth round, that the Jaguars eventually selected a defensive player, having focused early on landing a quarterback (Blake Bortles) and pass-catchers (Marqise Lee, Allen Robinson).
- New England Patriots (6 offense, 3 defense): After nabbing defensive tackle Dominique Easley in round one, the Patriots turned to offensive players for their next five picks, including second-rounder Jimmy Garoppolo.
- Washington Redskins (5 offense, 2 defense): The Redskins picked a couple defenders in the first four rounds, grabbing linebacker Trent Murphy and cornerback Bashaud Breeland, but they tipped the scales by leaning heavily toward offensive players with their late-round picks.
Most balanced drafts:
- New York Jets (6 offense, 6 defense)
- Cincinnati Bengals (4 offense, 4 defense)
- Carolina Panthers (3 offense, 3 defense)
- Cleveland Browns (3 offense, 3 defense)
- Denver Broncos (3 offense, 3 defense)
- San Diego Chargers (3 offense, 3 defense)
- Tennessee Titans (3 offense, 3 defense)
Most defensive-heavy drafts:
- Atlanta Falcons (7 defense, 2 offense): Offensive and defensive lines were viewed as two of the top priorities for the Falcons, but after addressing those positions in the first two rounds, Atlanta went on a linebacker frenzy in the mid-to-late rounds, snatching up four of them.
- Dallas Cowboys (7 defense, 2 offense): The Cowboys reportedly had three defensive players on their wish list in the first round, but when Anthony Barr, Aaron Donald, and Ryan Shazier came off the board, the team picked offensive tackle Zack Martin instead. Dallas remedied that by making seven of its final eight picks defensive players.
- Minnesota Vikings (7 defense, 3 offense): The Vikings made defense their focus in the mid-to-late rounds — their last five picks were defenders, including three defensive backs. Minnesota also selected a defensive player with its first pick, drafting linebacker Anthony Barr ninth overall.
- Oakland Raiders (6 defense, 2 offense): The Raiders’ approach looked similar to the Vikings’, as Oakland grabbed a linebacker (Khalil Mack) with its top-10 pick, then used its last five picks on defenders, with a couple offensive players sandwiched in between.
- Philadelphia Eagles (5 defense, 2 offense): Losing DeSean Jackson made wide receiver a priority for the Eagles in the draft, so the team snatched up Jordan Matthews and Josh Huff in rounds two and three. Outside of those two picks though, it was an exclusively defensive draft for Philadelphia.
Pro Football Rumors’ list of draft results by team was used in the creation of this post.
Minor Moves: Saints, Panthers, Bucs, Eagles
We’ll round up today’s minor transactions here, including mid-to-late-round draftees agreeing to contracts, players being claimed off waivers, and the retirement of a former NFLer who most recently played in the Canadian Football League…..
- The Chiefs announced that they have sixth-round pick Zach Fulton (Twitter link). The offensive lineman out of Tennessee was taken with the No. 193 pick.
- The 49ers announced that they have signed fifth-round outside linebacker Aaron Lynch and seventh-round defensive lineman Kaleb Ramsey, tweets Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- The Saints have signed former Notre Dame guard Mike Golic Jr. to a two-year contract, the club announced today in a press release. Golic went undrafted in 2013 and joined the Steelers for the preseason.
- Drake Nevis, who was cut yesterday by the Jaguars, has been awarded to the Panthers on waivers, says Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). The defensive lineman appeared in games for the Cowboys and Jags last season.
Earlier updates:
- The Buccaneers have waived running back Michael Smith, according to Wilson (via Twitter).
- The Eagles have locked up one of their draft picks, signing third-round wideout Josh Huff to a four-year deal, per Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).
- After being cut by the Seahawks yesterday, long snapper Jorgen Hus has been claimed off waivers by the Rams, according to Brian McIntyre (via Twitter).
- The Dolphins have cut punter Matt Syzmanski, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
- The only NFL team to lock up any draftees so far, the Bears have agreed to terms with two more players they selected last week, according to the team (Twitter links). Fourth-round running back Ka’Deem Carey and seventh-round tackle Charles Leno Jr. have reached agreements on four-year deals with the club. At Over The Cap, Jason Fitzgerald has estimations on what sort of contracts the duo will be receiving.
- The Jaguars have claimed linebacker Allen Bradford off waivers from the Giants, a day after he was cut, tweets Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com. Bradford, a former Seahawk like a few other players the Jags have added this offseason, fills the last spot on the team’s 90-man roster.
- Former Bills first-round pick Aaron Maybin has officially announced his retirement as a football player, according to the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts (Twitter link). After being selected 11th overall out of Penn State, Maybin failed to make a consistent impact at the NFL level, with his best season coming in 2011 as a reserve for the Jets (six sacks).
Jaguars Notes: Shorts, Rackley, UDFAs
The Jaguars held their State of the Franchise event today at EverBank Field, and while owner Shad Khan and team officials didn’t offer many noteworthy comments on the roster during that address, GM Dave Caldwell spoke to Hays Carlyon of the Florida Times-Union at the event and offered up a few interesting nuggets. Let’s dive in….
- The team has spoken to the reps for wide receiver Cecil Shorts, who is entering the final year of his contract. “Obviously, we want him here for the long haul,” Caldwell said. “He’s a valuable part of our organization and we’d love to at some point in time take care of Cecil.”
- Explaining the Jags’ decision to release 2013’s starting left guard, Will Rackley, Caldwell suggested that the veteran didn’t really fit the team’s scheme. The club wanted to give him an opportunity to catch on in a better situation elsewhere, per Caldwell.
- Caldwell said Jacksonville is “not done adding talent to the roster” and will be watching closely to see how its young players develop, so it’s too early to tell which positions the club may be focusing on upgrading a year from now.
- Caldwell is “really pleased” with the work his staff did to add the 17 undrafted free agents the team signed: “We got size on the d-line. We got some athletic offensive linemen. We got two really good receivers. We got a good safety [Craig Loston], a physical guy that played in the SEC. A good nickel cornerback in Rashaad Reynolds.”
- The Jaguars are hoping to sign their draft picks earlier this year than they did last year.
- Connecticut edge defender Tim Wellman is among the players invited to Jacksonville’s rookie minicamp, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
La Canfora On Draft, Browns, Jags, Easley
Based on what Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com was hearing during and after the draft, he believes the Browns traded down from No. 4 to No. 9 in the first round in the hopes that Texas A&M receiver Mike Evans would still be on the board. When Evans was snapped up by the Buccaneers seventh overall, Cleveland went another direction and never did address the receiver position in the draft. Here’s more from La Canfora, with a focus on draft-related what-ifs:
- The Jaguars “resisted several opportunities” to move out of the No. 3 overall slot and trade down with teams who were hoping to land Khalil Mack or Sammy Watkins, says La Canfora. We heard this morning that Jacksonville also considered trading with the Falcons, who were targeting Jake Matthews.
- Before they traded up to No. 22, the Browns were close to making deals with the Titans at No. 11 and the Cowboys at No. 16.
- If the Patriots hadn’t selected Florida’s Dominique Easley with their first-round pick, the Seahawks likely would have kept their first-rounder and used it on Easley rather than moving down. Similarly, the Cardinals would have selected Ryan Shazier if he was there at No. 20, but began attempts to trade down once he came off the board, ultimately swinging a deal with the Saints.
- Offensive tackle Ju’Wuan James likely would’ve been selected by the Panthers at No. 28 if the Dolphins hadn’t drafted him 19th overall.
- La Canfora continues to hear from sources that at this point rumors of a Ryan Mallett trade between the Patriots and Texans are just that — rumors.
- Defensive tackle Ego Ferguson, who was selected by the Bears in the second round, has been frequently identified by evaluators as one of the draft’s biggest reaches, says La Canfora.
Jags To Sign 17 UDFAs, Cut Six Players
10:46am: The Jaguars’ final three cuts were running back Delone Carter, defensive tackle Drake Nevis, and wideout Stephen Williams, according to O’Halloran (via Twitter).
10:02am: Fullback Shaun Chapas will also be among the Jaguars’ cuts, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
9:52am: The Jaguars have cut guard Will Rackley and wide receiver Jeremy Ebert, according to Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union (via Twitter). The moves won’t be the last ones for the club today — O’Halloran notes (via Twitter) that with 17 undrafted free agents being added to the roster, six players will need to be released to make room, meaning four more cuts should be on the way.
Rackley and Ebert were both in the final year of their respective contracts, with Rackley set to earn a $1.431MM base salary, while Ebert was on a minimum salary deal. Rackley started 11 games at left guard for Jacksonville last season and his performance ranked 79th out of 81 qualified guards, according to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required). Meanwhile, Ebert hauled in three passes in his time with the team.
As for the Jaguars’ undrafted free agent signings, PR coordinator Tad Dickman has the full list (via Twitter):
- Jeff Budzien, K, Northwestern
- Terrance Cobb, RB, Cumberland
- Deandre Coleman, DT, California
- Damian Copeland, WR, Louisville
- Trevor Gillette, LS, Rice
- Ricky Havili-Heimuli, DT, Oregon
- Allen Hurns, WR, Miami (FL) ($5K bonus and $15K in other guarantees, per Aaron Wilson)
- Marcel Jensen, TE, Fresno State
- Reggie Jordan, TE, Missouri Western
- Craig Loston, S, LSU
- Stephen Morris, QB, Miami (FL) ($5K bonus and $30K in other guarantees, per Wilson)
- Rashaad Reynolds, CB, Oregon State
- Tyler Shatley, G, Clemson
- D.J. Tialavea, TE, Utah State
- Josh Wells, OT, James Madison
- Marcus Whitfield, LB, Maryland
- Chad Zinchini, P, Tennessee Tech
King’s Latest: Manziel, Browns, Jags, Falcons
In his latest Monday Morning Quarterback column, Peter King of TheMMQB.com leads off by writing about the Rams‘ drafting of Michael Sam and Johnny Manziel‘s Thursday night wait in the green room. King also provides a few interesting tidbits, so let’s dive in and round them up….
- Manziel thought there was a decent chance he’d be selected by the Rams at No. 13, and when St. Louis passed, he became concerned about a free fall. Before the Browns eventually jumped up to No. 22 to nab Manziel, the Eagles were close to trading the pick to another club, likely the Vikings.
- Browns GM Ray Farmer on the decision to trade the No. 4 overall pick to the Bills, who used it to select wide receiver Sammy Watkins: “We were very close to turning in the card. We very easily could have turned in the card with Sammy’s name on it.”
- The Jaguars and Falcons had “many discussions” about a trade that would have included Jacksonville’s No. 3 overall pick and Atlanta’s No. 6. The Falcons would also have included at least a third-round pick to complete the deal, but the Jags decided to stay put to make sure they got Blake Bortles. Had the Falcons moved up to third overall, they planned to take the same player they ended up landing at No. 6: Jake Matthews.
- Jaguars GM Dave Caldwell on turning down the trade: “There were so many teams that wanted quarterbacks—at one, four, five, seven and eight, and they were all within striking distance of us. I just kept thinking, ‘One of those teams has to see what we were seeing in Bortles.’ So let’s say we move back and make a deal. What are we going to take in the third? A guard? You can find guards. You can’t find the quarterback you think fits your team best. So in the end it wasn’t a hard decision for us.”