Salary Cap Rollover For All 32 NFL Teams
This week, the NFLPA updated its salary cap report to include the rollover amounts for all 32 teams in the NFL. The Browns, as expected, lead the league in $58.9MM in cap space rolled over from the previous season. Here is the full rundown of each team’s rollover amounts:
After the Browns, the 49ers ($56MM), Titans ($30.3MM), Jaguars ($27.8MM), and Jets ($17.3MM) boast the highest rollover amounts in the league. The Dolphins ($69K), Saints ($287K), Giants ($365K), Eagles ($514K), and the Seahawks ($547K) have the least amount of rollover. In total, teams carried over nearly $340MM from last season, good for an average of $10.6MM per club.
Patriots Notes: Amendola, Bennett
- Danny Amendola is headed towards unrestricted free agency, but Mike Reiss of ESPN.com gets the sense that the Patriots will be the team that he wants to play for if he does decide to play another season. Amendola, 33 in November, has earned multiple Super Bowl rings with the Patriots and millions of dollars over the course of his nine-year career, so it stands to reason that he could consider retirement. He never saw the postseason until he joined up with New England in 2013, so it also stands to reason that he’d want to stay put. Last year, the veteran earned just $3.12MM and he would likely top that number if he explored free agency.
- More from Reiss, who opines that tight end Martellus Bennett is unlikely to return to the Patriots at his scheduled $6.2MM cap figure for the coming year. Last week, it was reported that the tight end wants to continue playing. I personally feel that the Patriots will balk at paying his $2MM roster bonus on March 14 in addition to his base salary, so the team may look to retain him at a cheaper rate.
Dante Scarnecchia Likely To Return In 2018
- Rumored to be a retirement candidate again, Dante Scarnecchia is back to work with the Patriots, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports. The longtime Pats offensive line coach, who retired after the 2013 season only to return in 2016, looks to be part of New England’s 2018 coaching staff. Now 70, Scarnecchia has been with the Patriots (aside from the 2014-15 seasons) since 1992. Excepting those two years after his initial retirement, Scarnecchia has been the Pats’ O-line coach since 1999.
Volin On Patriots' Offseason Plans
- The Patriots are currently near the bottom of the league in terms of salary cap space, but with most of their key players under contract, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe says New England will have plenty of room to operate as it sees fit this offseson. Plus, as Volin notes, the team can add another $17MM of cap space by cutting ties with some obvious release candidates like tight ends Martellus Bennett and Dwayne Allen. Volin also lays out a roadmap for the rest of the Pats’ offseason, which includes keeping Rob Gronkowski happy, re-signing Nate Solder, and letting Malcolm Butler walk.
Would Chris Hogan Be Cut In Cap-Saving Measure?
- Chiefs outside linebacker Tamba Hali, Bills wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin, Dolphins center Mike Pouncey, Patriots wide receiver Chris Hogan, Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib and others were identified by the Boston Globe’s Ben Volin as players who could be cut in cap-saving measures this offseason.
Patriots, RB Brandon Bolden Agree To Extension
The Patriots are bringing back one of their special teams aces for another season. ESPN’s Field Yates reports (via Twitter) that the team has signed running back Brandon Bolden to a one-year, $880K deal. The contract has $170K in guaranteed money, including a $60K signing bonus and $110K of the $790K salary (via the Boston Globe’s Ben Volin). His cap number will be at $720K.
The 2012 undrafted free agent out of Mississippi has spent his entire six-year career in New England, appearing in at least 10 games each season. Recently, Bolden’s contributed mostly on special teams, as ESPN’s Mike Reiss notes (via Twitter) that the running back only played 42 offensive snaps this past season (including 34 in the regular season finale). The 28-year-old ultimately finished the campaign with a career-high eight tackles to along with 67 rushing yards. His best offensive season came during his sophomore campaign, when he rushed for 271 yards and three scores on 55 carries while also hauling in 21 receptions for 152 yards.
While the Patriots have locked up Bolden, Volin points out that the team still has a handful of “key special teamers” who are hitting free agency. The grouping includes Pro Bowler Matt Slater, Nate Ebner, Brandon King, Marquis Flowers and Johnson Bademosi.
NFL Awards Compensatory Picks To 15 Teams
The NFL has awarded 15 compensatory draft picks to teams, as directed by the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. The compensatory pick system provides additional picks to teams who lose more/better qualifying free agents in the previous year than gained.
This year, the 32 comp picks were dispersed to 15 different teams. Here is the complete rundown:
Round 3
- No. 97 overall – Cardinals
- No. 98 overall – Texans
- No. 99 overall – Broncos
- No. 100 overall – Bengals
Round 4
- No. 133 overall – Packers
- No. 134 overall – Cardinals
- No. 135 overall – Giants
- No. 136 overall – Patriots
- No. 137 overall – Cowboys
Round 5
- No. 170 overall – Bengals
- No. 171 overall – Cowboys
- No. 172 overall – Packers
- No. 173 overall – Cowboys
- No. 174 overall – Packers
Round 6
- No. 207 overall – Packers
- No. 208 overall – Cowboys
- No. 209 overall – Chiefs
- No. 210 overall – Raiders
- No. 211 overall – Texans
- No. 212 overall – Raiders
- No. 213 overall – Vikings
- No. 214 overall – Texans
- No. 215 overall – Ravens
- No. 216 overall – Raiders
- No. 217 overall – Raiders
- No. 218 overall – Vikings
Round 7
- No. 251 overall – Chargers
- No. 252 overall – Bengals
- No. 253 overall – Bengals
- No. 254 overall – Cardinals
- No. 255 overall – Buccaneers
- No. 256 overall – Falcons
The Bengals, Cowboys, Packers and Raiders lead the way in comp picks this year with four. The Cardinals and Texans each snagged three, the Vikings own two, and the Falcons, Ravens, Broncos, Chiefs, Chargers, Patriots, Giants, and Buccaneers each have one.
David Harris Retires From NFL
David Harris is calling it a career. The former Jets and Patriots linebacker announced on Friday that he is retiring from the NFL. 
“After 11 years of having played the greatest team sport at its highest level, it’s now time for me to announce my retirement from the NFL,” Harris said in a statement provided by his agency.
Harris signed a two-year, $5MM deal ($1.25MM guaranteed) with the Patriots in June after he was dropped by the Jets in June. The team’s decision to release Harris came as a surprise given the timing of the move. Unable to take advantage of the first or even second wave of free agency, Harris signed a relatively modest deal with New England, giving him a chance to win a Super Bowl while getting some revenge on his former team.
From a football perspective, Harris’ second act with the Patriots was not a rousing success. The 34-year-old saw only 181 snaps during the regular season thanks to his decreased speed and lack of ability to drop back in coverage. Still, he was retained throughout the year for his leadership skills and the Patriots did reach the Super Bowl with him on the roster.
Harris spent ten years with the Jets after joining the team as a second-round pick in 2007. His 147 career starts in green are good for sixth all-time in franchise history.
Patriots’ Bennett Wants To Continue Playing
Last year, tight end Martellus Bennett told the Packers that he was planning on retiring after the season. As a result, the Packers released Bennett midway through the year, paving the way for the Patriots to claim him. The change of scenery has apparently changed his plans as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) hears that Bennett wants to continue playing. 
Whether the Patriots will seek to move forward with him, however, is unclear. Bennett is due a $2MM roster bonus on March 14, so New England may look to cut bait before that date. Meanwhile, his $6.2MM cap hit isn’t exorbitant and could be worthwhile if he is healthy and fully committed to football.
Bennett had a great year for the Patriots in 2016, hauling in 55 receptions for 701 yards and seven touchdowns. Unfortunately for the Packers, he didn’t deliver after signing a three-year, $21MM deal with them in free agency. In seven games, he had just 24 receptions, 233 yards, and zero touchdowns. Some in Green Bay believed that Bennett starting phoning it in after Aaron Rodgers went down with a broken collarbone, which led the team to bail on him in November. The Patriots had Bennett on the field for two weeks before having to place him on IR.
The Patriots need to make two determinations. The first is whether Bennett is able to play and wants to play. If the answer to both is yes, the second is taking a guess at his free agent value. If the Pats see Bennett getting less than $6.2MM on the open market – which is quite possible since the perception is that he quit on the Packers – there could be room to negotiate.
Opinion: Pats Should Keep Waddle
- It would make sense for the Patriots to retain tackle LaAdrian Waddle and/or tackle Cameron Fleming, Doug Kyed of NESN opines. The Pats won all five games that Waddle started in last year and he did not surrender a sack. Both Waddle and Fleming are familiar with the Pats’ blocking schemes and that is important for New England, particularly with Nate Solder scheduled for free agency.