Browns Trade Jason McCourty To Patriots
Jason McCourty isn’t being released by the Browns after all. The cornerback has been traded to the Patriots, according to an announcement from Cleveland. The deal will see McCourty and a seventh-round pick head to New England in exchange for the Patriots’ sixth-round choice. 
The Browns announced on Thursday afternoon that they would be releasing McCourty. Quickly, speculation emerged about McCourty joining up with the Patriots, who are in need of a cornerback after losing Malcolm Butler to free agency. He’s going to New England, but it’s going to be via a trade rather than a free agent signing.
Browns GM John Dorsey said that he was moving on from McCourty because he wasn’t sure if he would make the team’s roster in September. That doesn’t necessarily jive with the rest of the league’s assessment of McCourty’s skills. Last year, he graded out as a top-30 cornerback in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus. His play, according to the advanced metrics, was in line with his best seasons with the Titans in 2012 and 2013.
This, of course, will reunite Jason McCourty with twin brother Devin McCourty, who is entering his ninth season as a Patriots safety. The duo played together at Rutgers, with Jason entering the draft in 2009 and Devin following him a year later.
The McCourtys will turn 31 during Patriots training camp. But the Pats could use a replacement for Butler. They may opt to seek younger help in the draft or at least bolster their position, but a two-McCourty setup could be a common site for New England’s defense this coming season. The Pats still have Eric Rowe in the fold for 2018 as well.
This also continues the Patriots-Browns pipeline that’s been flowing for a bit. Cleveland acquired Jamie Collins from New England in 2016, and the Patriots added Barkevious Mingo from the Browns earlier that year. And last weekend, the Browns shipped Danny Shelton to the Pats.
[RELATED: Patriots Depth Chart]
Latest On Patriots’ Cameron Fleming, LaAdrian Waddle
The Patriots lost their starting left tackle on Wednesday when Nate Solder inked a four-year, $62MM with the Giants, but they have interest in retaining one or both of Cameron Fleming and LaAdrian Waddle, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Fleming is probably the more important of the New England free agent linemen, as he’s demonstrated the ability to play left tackle in the past. Last season, Fleming played 543 total snaps and graded as the league’s No. 24 offensive tackle, per Pro Football Focus. At age-25, Fleming is now the best pure offensive tackle — not counting Justin Pugh, who is better at guard — on the open market after Solder and Chris Hubbard signed elsewhere.
Waddle, 26, started 10 games for the Lions in 24, but he’s mostly been a reserve since then. He was pressed into starting duty for four games a season ago, and he also chipped in on nearly 20% of the Patriots’ special teams snaps.
Patriots To Host LB Jonathan Casillas, TE Asante Cleveland
The Patriots are hosting linebacker Jonathan Casillas and tight end Asante Cleveland today, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) and Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (Twitter link), respectively.
Casillas should be familiar to New England’s decision-makers, as the Patriots acquired him from the Buccaneers at the 2014 trade deadline. He played in eight games for the Pats that season before agreeing to a three-year, $10.5MM deal with the Giants the following offseason. New York is not expected to re-sign the 30-year-old Casillas, who finished the year on injured reserve, so he could help fill out a New England linebacker corps that also includes Dont’a Hightower, Kyle Van Noy, and Elandon Roberts.
Cleveland, meanwhile, was scheduled to become a restricted free agent this offseason, but the Chargers opted not to tender him a contract. While he’s never topped 12% playing time on offense and only has one career reception, Cleveland would be a candidate for special teams and reserve duty behind Rob Gronkowski. The Patriots are expected to release fellow tight end Dwayne Allen at some point, but given that he doesn’t have any guarantees due in the near future, Allen could stick on the New England roster throughout the summer.
Patriots, Falcons Pursuing RB Danny Woodhead
The Patriots and Falcons have reached out to free agent running back Danny Woodhead, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). Woodhead is available following his release from the Ravens earlier this week. 
Woodhead joined the Ravens on a free agent deal last offseason, but his contract was terminated before he could earn the full value of the $8.8MM deal. Thanks to a hamstring injury, Woodhead saw time in only eight games. He caught 33 passes for 200 yards in what was effectively half of a season.
Woodhead, a practice field favorite of the Jets, made his way to the Patriots in 2015 and became a major contributor in their offense. Across three seasons with New England, Woodhead averaged 4.8 yards per carry and averaged 32 catches for 342 yards per 16-game set. The Patriots are on the lookout for backfield help after losing Dion Lewis to the Titans. They did, however, re-sign one of their own in Rex Burkhead.
In Atlanta, Woodhead would serve as a complementary piece to go along with Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman. Woodhead hasn’t been utilized as a traditional ball carrier in recent seasons and he’d be doing even less in that regard with the Falcons.
Patriots To Re-Sign RB Rex Burkhead
The Patriots have agreed to a multi-year contract with running back Rex Burkhead, according to a league source who spoke with Jim McBride of The Boston Globe (on Twitter). The news has been confirmed by Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), who adds that it is a three-year pact with significant guarantees.
The Pats lost Dion Lewis in free agency when he inked a four-year deal with the Titans, but they’re holding on to their other major free agent tailback.
Burkhead accumulated more than 500 all-purpose yards with eight touchdowns last season. He will rejoin James White as a versatile running back. New England also retained Brandon Bolden recently, so a Burkhead pact will ensure three of the Pats’ top four backs are in line to return in 2018.
A four-year Bengals contributor, Burkhead posted his career yards-from-scrimmage high-water mark during his Patriots season despite an injury limiting him to just 10 games. He came back and played in two of New England’s postseason contests and will likely be entrusted with more key responsibilities as Tom Brady prepares for his age-41 season.
While the Pats could still use some backfield help to replace Lewis — the best of their ball-carriers last season — they appear to have their pass-catching contingent shored up minutes into free agency.
Patriots’ James Harrison In No Rush To Sign
James Harrison doesn’t appear to be in a rush to sign anywhere, barring an aggressive pitch from a team, according to Jeff Howe of The Boston Herald (on Twitter). He adds that the Patriots have expressed interest in a reunion, but it’s not clear to what degree.
Of course, Harrison may not have much of a choice in not landing an immediate contract. While Harrison was productive after being signed by the Patriots, there may not be a healthy market for a near-40-year-old edge defender with a recent history of locker room problems.
Harrison was released by the Steelers last December after his defensive role was greatly reduced. New England picked him up relatively quickly, and the veteran pass rusher went on to post two sacks with the Patriots during the regular season before performing well in the playoffs.
Five Teams In On DE Adrian Clayborn
Defensive end Adrian Clayborn is drawing interest from a number of teams. The Patriots, Colts, Bucs, Browns, and the incumbent Falcons are all in the mix, a source tells Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Clayborn led the Falcons with 9.5 sacks last season, a career high, and entered free agency as one of our top 50 free agents available. Nearly two-thirds of that total came against the Cowboys when Tyron Smith was sidelined. With more than half of that list spoken for, he now stands as one of the best edge rushers available.
Clayborn graded out as PFF’s No. 19 ranked edge defender in 2017. Each of these teams utilize a 4-3 scheme, a setup in which Clayborn has spent his entire NFL career.
A Bucs reunion is in play. Tampa Bay, which let Clayborn walk in 2015 after an injury-riddled run in south Florida, has Robert Ayers and William Gholston penciled in as starters. The Colts hold more than $7oMM in cap space and have yet to make much of a splash thus far on the market. They are converting to a 4-3 look and could use proven linemen. The Browns have already added rotational cog Chris Smith and also have Emmanuel Ogbah and Carl Nassib as Myles Garrett complements. New England skated by without much depth at end last season but has Trey Flowers back and some unproven young cogs as well.
Contract Details: CBs, McDougald, Ellis
Let’s take a look at the details from the latest contracts signed in the NFL, with all links going to Twitter unless otherwise noted:
- Bashaud Breeland, CB (Panthers): $24MM, three years. $8.5MM signing bonus, $10.4MM guaranteed. Base salaries of $900K, $6.75MM, $7.25MM (via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle).
- Brent Grimes, CB (Buccaneers): One year, $7MM. Guaranteed $3.5MM base salary. $3.5MM roster bonus due March 18. $3MM in incentives for playing time, INTs, Pro Bowl. (per Wilson).
- Nevin Lawson, CB (Lions): Two years, $9.2MM. $4.55MM guaranteed, $2.25MM signing bonus. Base salaries of $2.3MM (guaranteed) and $2.4MM. $1.25MM roster bonus due on third day of 2019 league year (via Wilson).
- Bradley McDougald, S (Seahawks): Three years, $13.5MM. $6.5MM guaranteed, $4MM signing bonus (via Wilson).
- Justin Ellis, DT (Raiders): Three years, $13.5MM. $4.25MM cap hold in 2018. 2019: base salary of $2.25MM, roster bonus of $2.25MM each protected for injury. Otherwise, Raiders can opt out by Day 3 of 2019 league year (per Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal).
- Nate Ebner, ST (Patriots): Two years, $5MM. $1.2MM guaranteed signing bonus. Base salaries of $1.2MM, $2MM (per Ben Volin of the Boston Globe).
Patriots, Bucs In On Trent Murphy
It’s down to three teams for Trent Murphy. The Patriots, Buccaneers, and the incumbent Redskins are all in the mix for the outside linebacker, according to ESPN.com’s Jenna Laine (on Twitter). 
The Redskins extended Murphy an offer over the weekend, but he elected to test the market before putting pen to paper. He’s likely glad that he did, given the healthy market for his services.
Murphy missed all of 2017 due to multiple injuries, including tears to his ACL and MCL in addition to offseason foot surgery. He also has a PED suspension in his past. To his credit, he showed promise in the previous season by registering nine sacks off the bench.
Trey Flowers and Eric Lee served as the Patriots’ starting defensive ends last season and are both under contract for 2018. The duo combined for 10 sacks last season. The Patriots entered Wednesday having the 21st-most available cap space in the NFL at $22.41MM.
As for Tampa Bay, which also locked up defensive tackle Beau Allen on Wednesday, it has William Gholston and Robert Ayers returning at defensive end after working as the starters for the majority of last year. The Bucs also have 2016 second-round pick Noah Spence, who was limited to six games last season.
The Redskins originally selected Murphy in the second round of the 2014 draft out of Stanford. Outside of missing all of last season, he had missed just one game through his first three seasons.
Giants To Sign OT Nate Solder
The Giants are expected to sign former Patriots left tackle Nate Solder, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). It’s a four-year, $62MM deal which contains $32MM guarnateed, tweets Rapoport.
The Patriots have lost some key free agents already this week. Wide receiver Danny Amendola is signing with the rival Dolphins, running back Dion Lewis has fled to the Titans, and now Solder has inked a deal with the Giants. The Patriots expected that Solder’s market would get too expensive for their liking and a Lewis re-signing was far from certain, but few expected the Pats to lose all three notables to the open market.
Solder, for his part, drew plenty of interest around the league before signing with Big Blue. The Texans, who fielded one of the NFL’s worst offensive lines in 2017, were reportedly a finalist for Solder, while the Browns were also targeting the former Patriot. This year’s crop of free agent offensive tackles was extremely weak, so Solder unsurprisingly was in high demand.
The Giants, of course, currently have a former-first round pick — Ereck Flowers — at left tackle, but he’ll now presumably be moved to guard, traded, or cut. With Weston Richburg already out the door, and fellow free agent Justin Pugh possibly not far behind, it’s possible New York will need Flowers to play on the interior of its offensive line in 2018.
Solder isn’t exactly a world-beater, as he graded as the NFL’s No. 32 tackle in 2017, per Pro Football Focus. But he’s been extremely durable over the course of his seven-year career, and that availability is certainly worth something. Aside from a lost 2015 campaign, Solder has appeared in at least 15 games in every season of his NFL tenure.
Solder is now the highest-paid tackle in the league by a wide margin, as his $15.625MM annual average is more than $2MM above Trent Williams‘ annual salary. That’s a testament to Solder’s leverage as the only high-level free agent tackle available this spring. The Giants will get their franchise left tackle, but they’ll pay a hefty price.
The Patriots, meanwhile, don’t currently have a clear left tackle on their roster. Reserves Cameron Fleming and LaAdrian Waddle are both free agents, while 2017 draftee Antonio Garcia likely isn’t ready for a full-time role.
[RELATED: Giants Depth Chart]