NFC Coaching Updates: Commanders, Vikings, Giants
Confirming early rumors from this week that Stanford quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard could be finding his way onto Eric Bieniemy‘s new offensive staff in Washington, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler has reported that the Commanders are working toward an agreement to likely make Pritchard the team’s new quarterbacks coach. The quarterbacks coaching position is currently occupied by last year’s position coach, Ken Zampese, but Fowler speculates that Zampese may stay on with the Commanders in a different role.
On the other hand, the team is parting ways with senior offensive assistant Jim Hostler, according to Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post. Hostler has been in Washington for the past three years and has an extensive history as a position coach in the NFL for several franchises, even serving as offensive coordinator for the 49ers back in 2007. Also expected to leave is wide receivers coach Drew Terrell. Terrell was a candidate for the Cardinals offensive coordinator position that was awarded to Drew Petzing, but after missing out, is still a strong candidate in Arizona for the role of pass-game coordinator.
Here are a few other coaching updates from around the NFC:
- The Vikings announced three staff updates today, according to Vikings staff writer Craig Peters. Minnesota hired two defensive staffers with past ties to new defensive coordinator Brian Flores. Mike Siravo was hired as the team’s new inside linebackers coach. Siravo worked as a graduate assistant at Boston College when Flores was there as a linebacker. Since then, Siravo has been a longtime follower of former Panthers head coach Matt Rhule, working with him at Temple, Baylor, and Carolina. He most recently held the position of defensive run game coordinator and linebackers coach for the Panthers. Lance Bennett has been hired as a defensive quality control coach for the Vikings. Bennett previously worked under Flores in Miami as an assistant to the head coach. Lastly, on the offensive side of the ball, Grant Udinski has been promoted to assistant quarterbacks coach. Udinski spent last season in the role of assistant to the head coach/special projects.
- The Giants are expected to make an addition to their coaching staff, according to Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer. Former Panthers assistant head coach on offense Jeff Nixon is expected to be hired in the role of running backs coach in New York. If true, Nixon would be taking the role over from DeAndre Smith, who departed for the same position in Indianapolis today. Nixon likely hopes the Giants will find a way to bring back star running back Saquon Barkley, who is set to hit free agency this offseason.
Latest On Giants’ Talks With Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley
It appears the Giants and Daniel Jones have finally begun their negotiations, following a delayed start caused by the quarterback’s late agency switch. Jones’ new agents are setting a high bar and have some deadline-driven leverage to use.
The $45MM-per-year number that emerged earlier this week appears in step with the Jones camp’s asking price. The fifth-year passer views his value as past $40MM AAV, Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports notes. As could be expected, the Giants are hoping a deal will check in lower. The team wants this deal to be closed at around $35MM per year.
[RELATED: 2023 NFL Franchise Tag Candidates]
The latter number has been circulated as well, with the Giants having hoped Jones’ asking price would not top that $35MM-AAV figure. Jones’ camp can compare prices to other QBs, but it appears a near-certainty he will not have the chance to explore free agency. Although the Giants do not look to be considering the $45MM-plus exclusive franchise tag for Jones, they will apply the non-exclusive tag ($32.4MM) if no agreement is reached by March 7 — when the window for tagging players closes. That would affect the Giants’ plans with Saquon Barkley, but Jones’ reps can use the threat of that cap-clogging QB tag as leverage against the team.
A post-contract-year price hike aside, this process could still have a happy ending (albeit an expensive one) for the Giants. Both camps view a Jones deal before the March 7 deadline as likely, Vacchiano adds, but this business could go down to the wire. The longer Jones is not tagged, the closer Barkley comes to hitting the open market.
It would be an interesting foray for Barkley, as a buyer’s market awaits this year’s glut of UFA-to-be running backs. The former No. 2 overall pick’s talent cannot exactly be questioned, especially after his bounce-back year, but the franchise tag price ($10.1MM) and flooded market could depress his value. Josh Jacobs and Tony Pollard are the only other backs connected to the franchise tag, and while those players being cuffed would stand to benefit Barkley most, the prospect of Miles Sanders, Kareem Hunt, Jamaal Williams, David Montgomery, Devin Singletary, D’Onta Foreman and Damien Harris all hitting the market offers teams cheaper alternatives to the five-year Giant. This could push Barkley back to the Giants’ offer.
New York offered Barkley an extension in the $12.5MM-per-year range, and though a $14MM-AAV pact has also come out, no report of that number being offered has emerged yet. With Ezekiel Elliott close to taking a pay cut or being cut, the 2023 season may feature only two backs — Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara — tied to $15MM-per-year contracts. No ball-carrier sits between $13-$15MM. Some familiar with GM Joe Schoen do not believe he would want to venture into the $14MM range, per Vacchiano. Though, if the Giants already offered $12.5MM, such a leap (without knowing the guarantee structure) is not hard to imagine. The Giants have been talking with Barkley longer than Jones, negotiating with the former Offensive Rookie of the Year in the fall and starting again in late January.
Jones, 25, has rocketed out of the QB no-man’s land position — the $15-$30MM-per-year range — and into another gap. No passers are currently tied to a deal between $35MM and $40MM per annum. The notion of the Giants bailing and looking into one of this year’s cheaper QB options has not surfaced. It would be interesting to see if a true hardball effort by Jones’ camp would lead to the team floating such a plan.
AFC Coaching Notes: Fangio, Colts, Jaguars
At 64, Vic Fangio is closer to the end of his coaching career than the beginning. However, his decision to take the Dolphins‘ defensive coordinator position should not be considered a short-term commitment.
“I still have a lot of coaching left in me,” Fangio said, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com. “It’s not like I’m thinking about retirement or anything. Somebody asked, ‘How much longer are you gonna do this?’ I don’t know. It might be 10 years, if they’ll have me here for 10 years.”
After a delay between when his Miami deal was first reported and when he officially accepted it, Fangio reportedly became the league’s highest-paid coordinator. Expectations will be raised in Miami, with the former Broncos head coach and celebrated defensive mind taking charge of a unit which struggled in 2022. Fangio’s new defense has number of intriguing players on it with plenty of upside. Regardless of their performance, Fangio, who signed a three-year contract, is eyeing a lengthy stay in the Sunshine State.
Here are some other coaching updates from the AFC:
- The Colts have seen plenty of turnover on their staff, one now led by Shane Steichen. The latest addition is DeAndre Smith, whom Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News tweets is leaving the Giants’ staff to head to Indianapolis. Smith spent last season as the Giants’ running backs coach and will work in the same capacity with the Colts. The 54-year-old assistant’s tenure in New York last year marked his first NFL coaching gig, following more than two decades spent in the college ranks; Smith will now reunite with Steichen, after the pair worked together at UNLV in 2009.
- Steichen is not planning to make wholesale changes on offense. One assistant who is expected to stay put: franchise icon Reggie Wayne (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Zak Keefer). Wayne, who played for the Colts for 14 seasons en route to becoming a Hall of Fame finalist, began his coaching career this past season as Indianapolis’ wide receivers coach and will likely remain in that role in 2023.
- The Jaguars lost Jim Bob Cooter earlier this week when he made the intra-divisional move to the Colts to become Indy’s offensive coordinator. Jacksonville found a replacement in Nick Holz (Twitter link via Mia O’Brien of 1010 XL). The veteran staffer spent 10 seasons as an NFL coach, all with the Raiders; his tenure with the team ended in 2021 after he worked as its assistant wide receivers coach. Holz spent the past season as the OC at UNLV and will now be paired alongside Jaguars OC (and close friend) Press Taylor.
- After yet another injury-filled season, the Chargers are making a change on the training side. They are moving on from longtime athletic trainer Damon Mitchell, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Mitchell had spent past six years as the team’s trainer and had been with the organization long before the injury-prone stigma entered the equation, spending the past 24 years in San Diego and Los Angeles.
AFC Coaching Notes: Ventrone, Browns, Broncos, Joseph, Raiders, Dolphins, Texans
After the Colts changed coaching staffs, Bubba Ventrone will have an opportunity to land on his feet. The Indianapolis special teams coordinator is on track to interview with the Browns, and ESPN.com’s Stephen Holder tweets the Colts are expecting to lose him to the Cleveland job. Ventrone spent five seasons in Indianapolis and is a well-regarded ST coordinator. The Browns are also interviewing Giants assistant special teams coach Anthony Blevins, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports tweets. That meeting is expected to commence via Zoom today, per CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson (on Twitter). The Browns fired ST coordinator Mike Preiffer earlier this week. Blevins has been with the Giants for the past five years.
Here is the latest from the coaching ranks:
- Prior to the Cardinals making Nick Rallis the NFL’s youngest active coordinator, at 29, the Broncos had him on their radar. Denver showed interest in the former Philadelphia linebackers coach, Troy Renck of Denver7 notes. Rallis is a cool 31 years younger than the favorite to land the Denver job (Rex Ryan), but the Broncos are still eyeing Vance Joseph. Despite being fired after two seasons as Denver’s HC, Joseph is interested in coming back, Renck adds. The Eagles also have eyes on the ex-Cardinals DC; they are finishing up a two-day interview Wednesday.
- The Colts are hiring University of Cincinnati offensive coordinator Tom Manning as their tight ends coach, Aaron Wilson of KPRC tweets. This will be a reunion for Manning, who was on Frank Reich‘s first Colts staff as tight ends coach. Manning had recently accepted Cincinnati’s offer to be its OC, coming over after a four-year stay on Matt Campbell‘s Iowa State staff. The ex-Cyclones OC drew interest from multiple NFL teams, per Wilson.
- The Browns will look to the college ranks as well. They are set to hire Utah State defensive coordinator Ephraim Banda to be their safeties coach, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel (Twitter links). Prior to his two-year run in Utah, Banda spent the previous two seasons as the University of Miami’s co-DC.
- To fill their safeties coach post, the Dolphins are adding Eagles assistant Joe Kasper, Cameron Wolfe of NFL.com tweets. Kasper joined the Eagles’ staff in Nick Sirianni‘s first year; this will be a move up the ladder, bringing positional responsibilities Kasper’s way for the first time.
- The Raiders fired defensive line coach Frank Okam, Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal notes. A former NFL D-lineman, Okam came to Las Vegas after two years on Matt Rhule‘s Carolina staff. The Raiders struggled on defense for most of the season, dropping from 14th to 28th in total defense. Rather than can DC Patrick Graham, the team is moving on from one of his lieutenants.
- In addition to ST coordinator Frank Ross, the Texans are also retaining wide receivers coach Ben McDaniels, Wilson writes. The younger brother of Josh McDaniels, Ben has been with the Texans since Nick Caserio‘s 2021 arrival. While Ben McDaniels has never worked for the Patriots, Caserio has been close with Josh McDaniels for many years. The Texans promoted Ben McDaniels from assistant wideouts coach in 2022.
Latest On Giants’ Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley Negotiations
The franchise tag window opened at 3pm CT today, and while it is unsurprising the Giants have not made a decision, Daniel Jones‘ recent actions could push the team down the path to one soon. Jones has changed agents, and his asking price may well prompt the Giants to tag him.
The $45MM-per-year number has been floated for the former first-round pick. That figure is higher than the Giants want to go; it might be significantly higher. The Giants hoped Jones’ asking price would come in below $40MM AAV, Paul Schwartz of the New York Post notes (video link).
[RELATED: 2023 NFL Franchise Tag Candidates]
Jones upped his value considerably this season, a statistically unspectacular campaign but an efficient one that brought improvement from his first three years. A woeful Vikings defense played a part, with Jones accounting for 368 and 379 yards in the Giants’ Week 17 and wild-card round games in Minnesota. Those marked Jones’ highest and second-highest yardage outputs this season; his all-around performance in the rematch led the Giants to their first postseason win in 11 years. The 25-year-old passer is now in strong position, and his recent actions point to him maximizing it.
Regarding negotiations, however, the Giants do not appear to be too far out of the starting blocks. Prior to Jones changing agents, the sides had not officially started talks, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News notes. Jones’ agent change merely delayed them, per Leonard, who adds this switch looks to have come about because of backchannel word ahead of the official talks. While the $45MM figure has circulated, it has not come up in official negotiations yet. Jones changing agencies does signal these discussions could bring some turbulence, but Leonard expects a deal to be finalized.
With no quarterback tied to a deal between $35MM and $40MM per annum, the latter number has become a line of demarcation of sorts. Dak Prescott and Matthew Stafford are tied to $40MM-per-year pacts. Both have obviously proven more than Jones, though the cap’s growth puts the Duke product in a good spot. Going to $45MM would move Jones past Josh Allen ($43MM per year), even though guarantees provide a better indications of contracts’ value. But the $40MM price range would put Jones in interesting company. A deal between $35-$40MM has been the expected range for Jones for a bit.
After a historically turnover-prone rookie season, Jones submitted two inferior statistical years in 2020 and 2021 — the latter an injury-shortened slate. The Joe Schoen–Brian Daboll regime, then, did not pick up his $22.4MM fifth-year option in May 2022. Despite Jones throwing 15 touchdown passes during the 2022 regular season — nine down from his 13-game rookie year — he finished with the league’s lowest interception rate and piloted a playoff-qualifying season even as various developments depleted the Giants’ pass-catching corps. But Big Blue might be forced to further weaken its skill-position arsenal to keep Jones.
New York still wants to sign both Jones and Saquon Barkley to long-term deals, Jeff Darlington of ESPN.com tweets. The tag is not expected to come out until close to the 3pm deadline on March 7. That is not uncommon; most tag business unfolds close to the March and July deadlines. But Jones will receive the tag if he is not signed by that point. That would put Barkley on track for free agency. The Giants tagging Barkley at $10.1MM would be far less constraining than cuffing Jones at $32.4MM. Big Blue would prefer this path, with a Jones extension producing a cap number low enough it would still allow for some free agency moves.
A Jones tag would not only limit the team’s options with outside free agents, it would cut into funds for a last-ditch Barkley deal. Following the tag deadline, the Giants would have six more days of exclusive Barkley negotiations; the legal tampering period begins March 13. However, the Combine will give the two-time Pro Bowl running back a good indication of what will be out there for him on the market. The team has offered Barkley a deal in the $12.5MM-per-year neighborhood, and it is believed a $14MM-AAV pact could wrap these negotiations. Thus, signing Jones by March 7 will be the best way for the Giants to retain both their offensive cornerstones.
The Titans navigated a similar situation in 2020 by re-signing Ryan Tannehill just before free agency and tagging Derrick Henry, who signed an extension that summer. The next two weeks will be telling for the Giants in their effort to retain their quarterback and running back.
Daniel Jones Changes Agents; Giants QB Seeking $45MM-Per-Year Deal?
Giants general manager Joe Schoen faces the tall task of keeping quarterback Daniel Jones and running back Saquon Barkley in the fold for at least the 2023 season. The team’s priorities in terms of signing long-term deals has shifted recently, and the former is looking to use his leverage to a significant extent.
Jones has changed agents, as first reported by ESPN’s Jordan Raanan (on Twitter). The 25-year-old was represented by CAA, but has signed with Athletes First; such a change usually requires a five-day waiting period, but CAA has reportedly waived that. The move marks one of several agent changes seen in recent weeks amongst pending free agents, but it could signal a desire on Jones’ part to secure a larger deal than many were expecting.
Indeed, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports that Jones is seeking more than what the Giants have offered to date. Specifically, he notes that Jones’ ask could be for a deal averaging “as much as $45MM per season.” That would represent a steep increase in price compared to the $35MM-per-year region a new contract has been expected to land in. It would also, of course, mark a much larger figure than what the non-exclusive franchise tag ($32.4MM) would cost for 2023.
Five signal-callers currently average $45MM or more on their current contracts, including First Athlete client Deshaun Watson. His historic, fully-guaranteed deal has widely been seen as an outlier compared to other QB mega-deals, though, and was signed under far different circumstances to the ones Jones and the Giants are currently in. The Duke alum had by the best year of his career in 2022, but his previous struggles made it an easy decision for the team to decline his fifth-year option last offseason.
Doing so now leaves them in the position of a multi-year deal being the best option with respect to keeping Barkley on the books as well. The franchise tag for running backs is a fraction of the cost for quarterbacks, and would save the Giants significant cap space by keeping Barkley around in 2023 via that route. That could postpone contract talks with him (which have suggested the 26-year-old could ink a deal worth roughly $14MM per year) until next offseason, where clarity may have emerged for the Giants on the performance and injury front.
While Florio’s update is certainly noteworthy, one from Paul Schwartz of the New York Post falls in line with previous reporting on the Jones situation. He notes that the “ballpark” contract the team is eyeing is five years and $190MM, which equates to an AAV of $38MM. Spreading out the cap hit on such a pact would give the Giants valuable flexibility, and confirm their stated goal of moving forward with him as their franchise QB. Negotiations could take an interesting turn now, however, as free agency draws nearer.
Coaching Notes: Pleasant, Curry, Broncos
A defensive coordinator interviewee earlier this decade, Aubrey Pleasant was without a job midway through last season. The Lions fired the veteran assistant, leading to a Packers move. But the former Rams assistant is coming back to Los Angeles. The Rams are rehiring Pleasant to be their defensive backs coach and defensive pass-game coordinator, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The sides have been talking about the job for about a month, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic tweets.
Both the Saints and Vikings interviewed Pleasant for their DC positions in 2021, shortly after he had taken a job as the Lions’ secondary coach. But the Lions fired him in October. The Packers, who have ex-Rams staffer Joe Barry in place as DC, hired him as a consultant to close out the season. Pleasant, who has been in the NFL for 10 seasons, will return to a Rams organization that previously had him in place as its cornerbacks coach from 2017-20. In addition to Pleasant, the Rams are adding Mike Harris as their assistant DBs coach, Rodrigue adds (on Twitter). Harris spent the past two years as a Bears offensive assistant.
Here is the latest from the coaching ranks:
- The Broncos’ lone known offensive coordinator candidate thus far, Ronald Curry will not be moving. The Saints will retain their quarterbacks coach, Aaron Wilson of KPRC tweets. Curry, a former Sean Payton hire, interviewed for both the Buccaneers and Broncos’ OC positions. As Denver will continue its search, Tampa Bay hired Dave Canales earlier this week. A former NFL wideout, Curry has been with the Saints since 2016.
- While multiple former Payton assistants connected to a reunion will not be heading to Denver, former Saints special teams coach Mike Westhoff will meet with his former boss tweeted about his upcoming Broncos meeting. Westhoff, 75, has been retired since 2019 but was rumored to be a candidate to join Payton in Denver. He worked for the Saints from 2017-18 but enjoyed long tenures (with the Dolphins and Jets) previously. In addition to former Saints coaches, Payton has been connected to coaches out of the league. Rex Ryan is favored to be the next Broncos DC, though interviews are ongoing, and Mike Zimmer has surfaced as a possible Broncos assistant option.
- Canales will bring a Seahawks assistant to Tampa. The Bucs are hiring Brad Idzik to be their wide receivers coach, John Schneider said during a radio interview (via Seahawks.com’s John Boyle, on Twitter). Idzik previously worked as the Seahawks’ assistant wideouts coach. This marks a return trip for Idzik, who is the son of former Bucs front office bastion (and ex-Jets GM) John Idzik. The younger Idzik had been with the Seahawks since 2019.
- The Raiders will greenlight a reunion as well, hiring Matt Lombardi to be their assistant wide receivers coach, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). Matt Lombardi is the younger brother of Raiders OC Mick Lombardi and the son of former Raiders exec (and Browns GM) Michael Lombardi. Matt Lombardi spent the past three years with the Panthers, being one of Matt Rhule‘s hires.
- Staying with the family theme, the Giants have added Brian Daboll‘s son to their staff. Christian Daboll will work as an offensive assistant in New York, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News tweets. Christian Daboll had previously worked as a student assistant at Penn State. Although the Giants have the younger Daboll listed as a staff member, they have not announced the hire.
2023 NFL Franchise Tag Candidates
Set to begin its fourth decade of existence, the franchise tag remains a valuable tool for teams to keep top free agents off the market. This year’s tag window opens at 3pm CT on Feb. 21 and closes at 3pm CT on March 7. The NFL released its franchise tag figures — regarding the non-exclusive tag, at least, which will apply to all but one possible tag recipient — earlier this month, and teams are busy budgeting for free agency.
The legal tampering period opens March 13, with the new league year (and official free agency) starting March 15. Once a player is tagged, he has until July 15 to sign an extension with his respective team. Absent an extension agreement by that date, the player must play the 2023 season on the tag (or go the Le’Veon Bell/Dan Williams/Sean Gilbert route, passing on guaranteed money and skipping the season).
With high-profile free agents weeks away from hitting the market, here are the players who figure to be tagged or at least generate conversations about a tag ahead of the March 7 deadline.
Locks
Lamar Jackson, QB (Ravens)
One of the most obvious tag candidates since the tag’s 1993 debut, Jackson has been extension-eligible since January 2021. He and the Ravens went through negotiations in 2021 and 2022, negotiating into the season two years ago and stopping talks before Week 1 — a Jackson mandate — of last season. The self-represented quarterback has declined multiple Ravens offers in this span and failed to finish a season for the second straight year. The endless extension drama and rumblings of team frustration about Jackson’s failure to return from an ankle injury aside, the team will tag the former MVP.
Baltimore GM Eric DeCosta said last month he had not decided on using the exclusive or non-exclusive tag — the former preventing teams from talking to the QB, the latter opening the door to offer sheets — but a recent report suggested the team is more likely to roll the dice by using the non-exclusive tag. This would allow another team to sign to Jackson, 25, to the fully guaranteed deal he covets (in a transaction that could send two first-round picks Baltimore’s way) but also hit the Ravens with just a $32.4MM cap hit.
With the Browns collecting three first-rounders and change for Deshaun Watson, the Ravens would almost definitely want more than the two-first-rounder haul attached as baseline compensation for franchise tag offer sheets. But an exclusive QB tag is expected to check in beyond $45MM; this would severely restrict the Ravens in free agency.
The Browns’ Watson extension changed the game for the Ravens, creating a potentially unbridgeable guarantee gap. Jackson has long been connected to seeking a deal north of Watson’s $230MM fully guaranteed; the Ravens offered $133MM guaranteed at signing last year. Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti spoke out against the Browns giving Watson that money, and tag-and-trade scenarios involving the top quarterback in Ravens history have entered the equation. It will be a fascinating offseason in Baltimore, even after DeCosta and John Harbaugh expressed hope Jackson can be extended.
Likely tag recipients
Orlando Brown Jr., T (Chiefs)
Criticized by some for turning down the Chiefs’ six-year, $139MM extension offer in July 2022, Brown stayed healthy this season and earned another Pro Bowl nod. The mammoth left tackle is 2-for-2 in Pro Bowls as a Chief, and although he is not quite a top-tier blindsider, he would be one of this year’s top free agents if permitted to hit the market. The Super Bowl champions are not expected to let that happen. A second Brown tag would come in at $19.99MM, being 120% of his 2022 salary.
Brown, 26, cited insufficient guarantees in the Chiefs’ July proposal, which contained $38MM guaranteed at signing and $52.25MM guaranteed in total. The total guarantee figure trailed only ex-Ravens teammate Ronnie Stanley among tackles, while the full guarantee would have placed Brown fourth at the position. Brown turning down that proposal brought risk, and some in the Chiefs organization expressed frustration with the talented blocker. But the former Ravens right tackle’s bet on himself still appears to be paying off. This will be a crucial offseason for the Chiefs and Brown. A third tag — 144% of Brown’s 2023 salary — in 2024 would be viewed as untenable, sending him to free agency on the Kirk Cousins/Trumaine Johnson path. That makes July 15 a fairly firm deadline for Brown and the Chiefs.
Josh Jacobs, RB (Raiders)
After Las Vegas’ new regime passed on Jacobs’ fifth-year option, he became the first Raider to win the rushing title since Marcus Allen in 1985. Jacobs led the NFL in touches in 2022 (393) but was never a primary ball-carrier at Alabama; the former first-round pick should still have some tread on his tires. Running back extensions have become popular but divisive in recent years. While Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara and (for now) Ezekiel Elliott are attached to deals worth at least $15MM per year, the Raiders can tag Jacobs at just $10.1MM.
Jacobs, 24, has expressed a desire to stay in Nevada, and Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler want to continue this partnership as well. With many quality running backs on track for free agency, new deals could be finalized before the Raiders become serious about Jacobs negotiations. Whether that happens this year or not, the former first-round pick is unlikely to reach the market.
Daron Payne, DT (Commanders)
After early-offseason extension rumblings, the Commanders did not move too far in this direction last year. They re-upped Terry McLaurin and let Payne play out a contract year. But Payne turned 2022 into a platform campaign that stands to make him one of this year’s top free agents. The Commanders are soon to have $26MM in additional cap space, by moving on from Carson Wentz, and the team will likely give strong consideration to keeping Payne off the market. The defensive tackle tag costs $18.94MM. Washington has begun Payne talks, but those are still in the early stages.
Washington has some mouths to feed on its defensive line, with both Montez Sweat and Chase Young now extension-eligible. The team already paid Payne’s Alabama and Washington D-tackle teammate, Jonathan Allen, and drafted another Crimson Tide interior rusher (Phidarian Mathis) in Round 2 last year. Mathis went down in Week 1, and Payne broke through for an 11.5-sack, 18-TFL season. A tag here is not an open-and-shut tag case, but it would be a tough blow for the Commanders to see their sack leader walk. Regrouping with Payne, 25, would make more sense, especially with the team not preparing to spend big at quarterback this offseason.
Tony Pollard, RB (Cowboys)
Seeming likelier by the week, a Pollard tag would keep an emerging playmaker with a light career workload in the fold. The Cowboys are believed to be strongly considering a tag here, even with Ezekiel Elliott‘s bloated contract on the books. Elliott taking less to stay — it would need to be a lot less — has already been floated, opening the door for his better-performing (in recent years, at least) backup to stick around on the $10.1MM number or via an extension.
It would be strange to tag a backup, but Pollard, 25, is essentially a Dallas starter. He matched Elliott with 12 touchdowns in 2022 and smashed his career-high scrimmage yards number with 1,378. Pollard’s 631 career touches rank just 24th among backs since 2019, pointing to a few prime years remaining on the horizon. With Elliott’s cap number near certain to move down from its present $16.7MM place and Pollard not at risk of seeing his fractured fibula affect his 2023 availability, the former fourth-round find should be back in Dallas.
The Giants’ decision
Daniel Jones, QB
Passing on Jones’ fifth-year option — an understandable decision, given Jones’ first three seasons — leads the Giants to one of the more interesting free agency quandaries in recent memory. After making Saquon Barkley a higher priority regarding in-season extension talks, Big Blue’s new regime has come around on Jones. The former No. 6 overall pick piloting the Giants to the divisional round for the first time in 11 years transformed his value from where it was entering the season, and GM Joe Schoen all but assured the fifth-year passer will be back with the team in 2023. Will that be on a long-term deal or via the tag?
If the Giants and Jones, 25, cannot find common ground before March 7, the tag will likely come out. The team encountered this situation with Leonard Williams in 2021 and tagged the trade acquisition for a second time. That preceded a monster extension. The Giants probably should be careful here, with two late-season matchups against a porous Vikings defense boosting Jones’ value — to the $35MM-per-year range. But the team also should be eager to see Jones in Brian Daboll‘s offense and surrounded by better pass catchers.
Saquon Barkley, RB
A Giants team that battled injuries and bad investments at wide receiver relied on Barkley for much of 2022. Losing the two-time Pro Bowler for nothing will bring considerable risk. Jones sitting atop the Giants’ to-do list may be a pivot from the midseason point, when Schoen referenced a Barkley tag. A positional value-based course change could send Barkley to free agency.
The Giants are believed to have offered Barkley a deal in the $12.5MM-per-year neighborhood, and while the former No. 2 overall pick cited his injury history (21 missed games from 2019-21) in saying he is not looking to reset the running back market, Schoen noted the sides’ 2022 negotiation did not come close to a deal. Barkley, 25, is believed to be seeking a contract near McCaffrey’s $16MM-per-year market-setting price. A $14MM-AAV compromise could be in play, but Barkley may also be keen on testing the market.
Tagging Jones at $32.4MM would clog the Giants’ cap ahead of free agency, whereas as a Barkley tag ($10.1MM) would not drain the team’s funds on the same level. Barkley can make a case he is worthy of the McCaffrey-Kamara tier, given his production (when healthy) and versatility — and the salary cap jumping nearly $30MM (to $224.8MM) since those stars’ 2020 extensions were finalized. But the Giants are not yet prepared to go much higher than the $12MM-AAV range — the second tier for running backs. Jones talks not producing a deal would put the Giants to a decision; Barkley could become one of the most talented backs to hit free agency.
While Barkley is a better player, Jones has become the Giants’ top priority. Tagging the quarterback would be far more expensive than cuffing Barkley. A Jones extension/Barkley tag scenario remains the best Giants path, but that can only come to fruition if Jones agrees to terms before March 7.
On tag radar
Jessie Bates, S (Bengals)
With Joe Burrow now extension-eligible, new contractual territory awaits the Bengals. Tee Higgins is also eligible for a new deal, with Germaine Pratt weeks away from free agency. Vonn Bell, a three-year Bengals starter who is also nearing free agency, would be a cheaper alternative at safety to keeping Bates on a second tag. Cincinnati also drafted potential Bates heir apparent Dax Hill in the first round. This all points to the Bengals letting Bates walk — as they did defenders Carl Lawson and William Jackson in 2021 — but the former second-round pick is still one of the league’s top safeties.
The Bengals and Bates never came close on an extension last year; the team’s conservative guarantee policy led to an offer of $16MM guaranteed at signing. While player personnel director Duke Tobin said last summer renegotiations this year will not be off the table, Bates will likely hit the market. The five-year Cincinnati starter, who will turn 26 next week, can be re-tagged at $15.5MM.
Jamel Dean, CB (Buccaneers)
The Bucs tagged Chris Godwin in each of the past two years and prioritized retaining their core players above all else during that span. But, with Tom Brady‘s void-years money hitting the Bucs’ cap in 2023, a Dean tag will be difficult to pull off. The Saints moving from $75MM-plus over the cap in February 2021 to creating room for a Marcus Williams tag, however, shows how teams can go from cap hell to carving out tag space. That said, Brady’s $35.1MM hitting the cap pushes the Bucs past $50MM over the 2023 salary ceiling.
Dean, 26, has been one of the team’s top players. The former third-round pick grades as Pro Football Focus’ No. 11 overall cornerback from 2020-22. This still looks like an unlikely proposition, with the corner tag at $18.14MM, but it should not be considered completely off the table.
Evan Engram, TE (Jaguars)
Tight ends Mike Gesicki, David Njoku and Dalton Schultz received tags in 2022, and the tight end tag again checking in as the third-cheapest ($11.36MM) this year makes the Jaguars keeping Engram off the market a logical step. The former Giants first-round pick broke through on his one-year Jags pact, filling a longstanding void for the franchise. Engram’s 766 receiving yards set a Jacksonville single-season tight end record. With mutual interest believed to exist, a tag as a bridge to a summer extension — ahead of Engram’s age-29 season — is a scenario to watch here.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson, S (Eagles)
The Eagles traded two Day 3 draft picks for Gardner-Johnson and moved him from corner to safety. After the ex-Saints slot defender led the NFL in interceptions, he will be in line for a payday. New Orleans and Gardner-Johnson, 25, could not come to terms last summer, leading to the trade, but Philadelphia wants to retain the imported DB. The Bengals kept Bates off the market last year with the safety tag, which checks in at $14.46MM this year. Given the volume of defenders the NFC champions have set for free agency, this looks like a longer-odds scenario.
Dre’Mont Jones, DL (Broncos)
Jones’ statistical production would not be in line with a tag. The talented defensive lineman has yet to surpass 6.5 sacks or 11 quarterback hits in a season, but the former third-round pick has offered consistency and earned praise from the front office. Following the Broncos’ decision to trade Bradley Chubb, GM George Paton identified Jones as a player the team wanted to keep. The advanced metrics also view Jones fondly; Pro Football Focus charts the former third-round pick in the top 20 for pressures since 2019. Jones is believed to be a higher priority compared to guard Dalton Risner, a fellow Denver free agent-to-be.
Sean Payton‘s team using a $19MM tag on a non-Pro Bowler would be risky during an offseason in which the draft capital-poor team — thanks to the Payton trade requiring a 2023 first-round pick — faces a key free agency stretch. Jones, 26, sticking around should also depend on whom the Broncos hire as defensive coordinator.
Jordan Poyer, S (Bills)
Buffalo defensive stalwarts Poyer and Tremaine Edmunds are ticketed for free agency, but with the NFL still grouping rush- and non-rush linebackers together under its tag formula, Edmunds is not a realistic tag candidate. The linebacker tag ($20.9MM) trails only the QB price. Poyer, 31, is coming off his first Pro Bowl season and has been one of the Bills’ steadiest players in the Sean McDermott era. Signed during McDermott’s first offseason, Poyer has inked two Bills contracts. He angled for a third, eventually agreeing to an incentive package, and became indispensable during a season in which the Bills lost Micah Hyde to a September neck injury and saw Damar Hamlin face one of the scariest health issues in NFL history in January.
Hamlin aims to return, while Hyde is under contract. But a Bills defense that has seen inconsistency at corner for years could still use Poyer. If the parties cannot strike a deal before March 7, the $14.5MM safety tag may not be too steep here. That said, the Bills may try to avoid a tag and save some free agency dough for Edmunds.
Geno Smith, QB (Seahawks)
A $32.4MM quarterback tag does sound too steep for Smith, his Comeback Player of the Year award notwithstanding. The Seahawks traded Russell Wilson on March 8, 2022; they re-signed Smith to a one-year, $3.5MM deal on April 14. That low-cost, incentive-laden accord effectively illustrated the NFL’s view of the former second-rounder. While Smith’s stunning season upped his value tremendously, it still seems unlikely the franchise tag will come into play. A transition tag — worth $29.5MM and involving no draft compensation — would be a more logical move.
But the top tag has been floated as a Smith-Seattle scenario. The sides have begun negotiations, and Smith’s camp figures to factor the tag salaries into the talks. This process still feels like it will end in a Smith medium-term deal. But after a 30-touchdown pass season that also included an NFL-high 69.8% completion rate, the 32-year-old passer setting a high price as the tag deadline nears would force the team to consider cuffing its starter.
Giants Re-Sign WR Isaiah Hodgins
The Giants have been busy re-signing some of their exclusive rights free agents this week. The biggest of those names re-signed with the team Thursday.
Isaiah Hodgins, who went from waiver claim to the team’s most reliable stretch-run wide receiver, re-signed for the 2023 season. The Giants still have two more years of control with Hodgins, who is not eligible for unrestricted free agency until 2025. This is likely a one-year agreement, tabling this matter to restricted free agency in 2024.
Evolving from the “Minor NFL Transactions” space, Hodgins made a quick assimilation from Bills reserve to Daniel Jones‘ go-to guy. A former Brian Daboll charge in Buffalo, Hodgins caught four passes in the Bills’ Week 5 blowout of the Steelers and played for the team against the Chiefs the following week. Those cameos did not provide much indication of where his season would go.
Hodgins, 24, finished with 37 receptions for 392 yards and four touchdowns — almost all of those numbers coming as a Giant — and filled a void for a team that had seen its once-intriguing receiver situation turn into a borderline emergency. Season-ending injuries to Sterling Shepard and Wan’Dale Robinson, a trade of Kadarius Toney and Kenny Golladay becoming one of the worst free agent signings in recent NFL history left Darius Slayton as the last man standing. Hodgins, whom the Bills waived on November 1, did well to fill in the gaps and should be a notable cog for the 2023 Giants as well.
A second-generation NFLer, Hodgins caught eight passes for 89 yards and a touchdown in the Giants’ last-second loss to the Vikings in Week 17. Two weeks later, the 6-foot-4 pass catcher totaled eight receptions for 105 yards and a score to help the Giants upset the Vikes in the franchise’s first playoff win in 11 years.
Shepard’s restructured contract voided this week, and Slayton is on track for unrestricted free agency. Golladay will soon be released. The Giants are expected to pursue free agent wide receivers next month, but Hodgins will almost definitely factor into the team’s equation next season.
Giants Open To $14MM-Per-Year Saquon Barkley Deal?
With Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley‘s free agencies happening in the same year, the Giants face the prospect of losing their two-time Pro Bowl running back. They have made their priority clear: Jones’ positional value will lead to the quarterback being the first order of business. That clouds Barkley’s Big Apple future.
The Giants did approach Barkley about an extension before Jones, entering negotiations with the former Offensive Rookie of the Year during their bye week. But GM Joe Schoen confirmed the sides did not come close on terms. The Giants were believed to have offered Barkley a deal worth around $12.5MM per year. While Barkley said he was not looking to reset the running back market, he is believed to be looking for an accord in the Christian McCaffrey neighborhood ($16MM AAV).
A compromise may be in reach, however. Should the talks move to a $14MM per year compromise, ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan notes that is believed to be enough to finalize a deal. This would place Barkley between the first and second tiers at his position, bridging a narrow gap between the McCaffrey-Alvin Kamara plane ($15MM and up) and the field.
This might not be a splashy conclusion for Barkley’s camp, with McCaffrey’s deal having topped the market for almost three years now, but it would set up the former No. 2 overall pick to be a pivotal part of the team’s Jones-centric future. Guarantee structure would also play an obvious role in Barkley agreeing to an extension ahead of free agency, though the running back — via his draft-slot contract and fifth-year option — has already done quite well for himself.
Barkley has said he would like to return, and it would be interesting to see the Giants’ skill-position centerpiece agree to a new contract before testing the market. Feelers to potentially interested teams would undoubtedly occur, with the Combine (the illegal tampering hub) approaching. But a host of running backs being near free agency also opens the door to a buyer’s market forming at a position that has not fared too well in recent Marches. Since Le’Veon Bell‘s $13.13MM-AAV Jets deal in 2019, no running back has signed for more than $7MM annually on the open market. Each of the league’s RB deals in the $12MM-AAV range — for Dalvin Cook, Derrick Henry, Nick Chubb, Joe Mixon and Aaron Jones — came via extensions.
Then again, Barkley is more talented than just about any back to reach free agency over the past several years. Even with the prospect of Kareem Hunt, Miles Sanders, Jamaal Williams, Devin Singletary and David Montgomery hitting the market together, Barkley would reside as the clear-cut top prize. He led the league in yards from scrimmage (2,028) as a rookie and showed he could hold up for a full season in 2022, totaling 1,650 scrimmage yards and 10 touchdowns while anchoring a bottom-tier Giants skill corps. Josh Jacobs and Tony Pollard being tagged would only increase Barkley’s value.
The Giants have been linked to a willingness to match or surpass $35MM per year for Jones, and Raanan confirms the quarterback’s extension is expected to check in north of that number. Jones on this deal and Barkley at $14MM per year — on a team that has extension candidates in Dexter Lawrence and Andrew Thomas — would bring a major change from its 2022 payroll setup, thus impacting the team’s funds for outside upgrades. But the salary cap’s steady rise will be beneficial here. The cap will climb by nearly $17MM this year, moving to $224.8MM.
Conflicting reports have emerged about the Giants’ appetite for tagging Barkley, though Raanan notes a Jones extension before the tag window closes (March 7) leaving the door open for a Barkley tag is the team’s preferred option. Schoen has referenced a Jones tag, but that cap hold ($32.4MM) would hinder the Giants’ free agency plans. Tagging Barkley would cost the Giants just $10.1MM. This limits Barkley’s leverage with the team, and with the tag window opening Tuesday, the Giants’ Barkley-Jones setup remains the most interesting situation on this front.