Giants' McIntosh Long Way From Field
- Giants coach Pat Shurmur isn’t sure if he’ll see fifth-round pick R.J. McIntosh on the field before the start of the season. Shurmur tells reporters (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan) that the defensive lineman is looking at an “extended-rehab type situation,” which may be tied to his thyroid issue. It took a long time for McIntosh to sign with the Giants and it could take even longer for the Giants to find out what they have in the Miami product.
Extra Points: Rookie Scale, McCoy, Bills, Beckham, Giants, Donald, Rams
Roquan Smith still isn’t signed. The eighth overall pick in this year’s draft is the last remaining unsigned pick, and there’s no end in sight to the impasse between the linebacker and the Bears. Although issues like total guaranteed money and signing bonuses are predetermined in rookie contracts, things like offsets and when guarantees will void can still be haggled over.
To help better understand the process, Andrew Brandt of SI.com took a look at the rookie contract process, and spoke with a handful of agents. Brandt, a former Packers executive, writes that it’s a “system tilted heavily toward management” and that the players have little leverage now due to the 2011 CBA. Brandt writes that teams have become “emboldened” by their newfound power in negotiating rookie deals, and that “teams like the Bears are looking to invalidate future guarantees based on discipline for on-field conduct.”
The Bears want to be able to void guaranteed money from Smith’s contract if he were suspended for on-field conduct like an illegal hit, and Smith is fighting back. It will be fascinating to see how the situation plays out. Here’s more from around the league:
- The ex-girlfriend of LeSean McCoy issued a new statement yesterday, saying that she is still waiting for “justice to be served.” McCoy has consistently denied any wrongdoing and has not yet been punished by either the Bills or the NFL.
- Odell Beckham Jr. didn’t play in the Giants’ preseason opener, but his absence had nothing to do with his contract. Although the two sides are still negotiating a contract extension which should make OBJ the highest paid receiver in the game, coach Pat Shurmur said he wasn’t going to play his star in the first game anyway, according to Tom Rock of Newsday.
- Aaron Donald missed the August seventh deadline to report and will become a restricted free agent after the season, but the deadline was mostly irrelevant writes former NFL agent Joel Corry of CBS Sports. Since the Rams will certainly franchise tag Donald if the two sides can’t agree on an extension, it doesn’t really matter whether he’s a restricted or unrestricted free agent after this year, and there was no reason for Donald to report.
Pat Shurmur On Odell Beckham Jr. Status
- The Giants‘ reasoning behind sitting Odell Beckham Jr. in the preseason opener stemmed from his injury recovery, not his contract situation, per Pat Shurmur. “I want to be smart with his recovery coming back [from ankle surgery],” Shurmur said, via Tom Rock of Newsday. “I never intended to play him in this game. I didn’t reveal that to [the public], but I never intended to.” Beckham has not experienced a known setback in his recovery from last season’s ankle injury. He encountered ankle trouble during the preseason against the Browns last year, spraining his left ankle barely a month prior to fracturing it.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/11/18
Here are Saturday’s minor moves.
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: CB Ryan Neal
- Waived: T Kendall Calhoun
Denver Broncos
- Claimed off waivers from Bengals: T Austin Fleer
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: DL Lord Hyeamang
New York Giants
- Signed: DB Mike Jones
- Waived: DE Kristjan Sokoli
Philadelphia Eagles
- Released from IR: TE Adam Zaruba
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: DB Trey Caldwell, DB Kenneth Durden
- Waived: CB Jarell Carter, CB Joseph Este
Washington Redskins
- Placed on IR: RB Derrius Guice, TE Manasseh Garner
- Signed: TE J.P. Holtz, LB Jeff Knox, DL Jalen Wilkerson
- Waived/injured: FB Elijah Wellman
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/8/18
Today’s minor moves:
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: LB James Crawford
New England Patriots
- Released from IR: T Nate Theaker
New York Giants
- Signed: S Mike Basile
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: RB Gerald Holmes
- Waived: WR Marvin Bracy
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: DT Nathan Bazata
- Waived/Injured: CB David Rivers
Latest On Giants, OBJ
- On Monday, we heard conflicting reports regarding the negotiations between Odell Beckham Jr. and the Giants. One report indicated that the Giants are offering OBJ less than Sammy Watkins‘ average annual value of $16MM/year. Later, we heard that the Giants are willing to make OBJ the highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL. The discrepancy likely comes from different interpretations of the same offer, as Mike Florio of PFT writes. In an unusual role reversal, it seems that the team is evaluating the offer based on the new money average, while the player’s agent is going off of the cumulative average, which includes Beckham’s 2018 salary of $8.49MM. In theory, the Giants’ offer to Beckham could be a five-year, $85.5MM deal, which would give him a league-leading $17.1MM new money average. However, if the 2018 salary is included, that would give him an average of $15.659MM. Reading between the lines, it sounds as though OBJ’s team could be looking to top Antonio Brown‘s AAV including the current year, which would be a very lofty goal.
OBJ, Giants Progressing Toward Extension
A new contract for wideout Odell Beckham Jr. could be right around the corner. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets that the receiver’s agent, Zeke Sandhu, and the Giants have “engaged in good-faith negotiations” that would make Beckham the highest-paid wideout in the NFL. While a deal isn’t expected to be finalized in the coming days, Rapoport says the two sides are “encouraged” that a deal could be finalized before the start of the regular season.
We learned yesterday that OBJ was optimistic about a new deal, but reports from today indicated that the Giants’ offer may have been relatively underwhelming. New York’s reported offer would have paid Beckham a lower average annual salary than Sammy Watkins, which our own Zach Links says would be south of $16MM. If Beckham is going to be the highest-paid player at this position, he’d have to earn more than the $17MM that Antonio Brown is set to make in his extension with the Steelers.
The 25-year-old is set to earn a bit less than $8.5MM in his fifth-year option season, meaning he could be looking to double his salary in 2019. For what it’s worth, the wideout previously acknowledged that he may have to sacrifice some money for long-term security, which could be an indication that Beckham is willing to give the Giants a slight discount if they sign him to a longer deal. If OBJ doesn’t sign an extension with the organization, the Giants could realistically control the receiver for more two additional seasons via the franchise tag.
The 2014 first-round pick was limited to only four games last season, finishing with 25 receptions for 302 yards and three scores. However, there’s no denying his talent, as he finished the previous three campaigns with at least 1,300 receiving yards.
Giants Offer OBJ Less Than $16MM/Year
Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. says he’s optimistic about a new deal coming together, but the two sides still have a ways to go. The Giants latest offer to OBJ would give him an average annual salary below that of Chiefs wide receiver Sammy Watkins, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
Watkins signed a three-year, $48MM deal with the Chiefs this offseason, meaning that the Giants have offered Beckham less than $16MM per year. Assuming the offer is still in the $15MM/year range, it’s not quite chump change, but it would put Beckham outside of the top five for wide receivers when it comes to new money.
At the moment, Watkins is at the top of the list, but that will change in 2019 when new deals kick in for Antonio Brown ($17MM per year), Mike Evans ($16.5MM), DeAndre Hopkins ($16.2MM), and Brandin Cooks ($16.2MM) leapfrog Watkins. OBJ’s team, meanwhile, is likely seeking a deal to make him the highest-paid receiver in the NFL. So, clearly, there’s a large divide that needs to be bridged. In the the meantime, OBJ’s agent Zeke Sandhu has left town, Anderson tweets.
If OBJ does not sign an extension with the Giants, the club can still control him through two consecutive franchise tags. No new deal for OBJ means taking a risk and potentially not seeing the open market until after the 2020 season.
Giants’ Teddy Williams Requests Release
Giants cornerback Teddy Williams has requested his release from the team, according to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo (on Twitter). Williams has been away from the Giants for the last few days to deal with a family health issue and wants additional time to help address it. 
[RELATED: Odell Beckham Jr. Optimistic About New Contract]
Williams still expects to play in 2018, Garafolo hears, and he hopes to be playing with the Giants. However, he does not want to tie up a roster spot in the interim.
Williams, 29, has been in the NFL since 2012, but he has never started a game. Working mostly on special teams as a member of the Panthers in 2015 and 2016, his history with GM Dave Gettleman helped bring him to New York. It stands to reason that the team will grant Williams’ request before the end of business on Monday.
Odell Beckham Jr. Optimistic About New Contract
Earlier this week, the Giants and Odell Beckham Jr. finally began contract talks, and although it’s only been a couple of days, it appears that things are moving in the right direction. Per Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com, OBJ is optimistic that a new contract will get done, and Raanan suggests that the two sides could come to terms before the start of the regular season.
In his first news conference since last October, Beckham said, “Optimistic? Yeah. I’m optimistic. I’m confident it will all work itself out. It always does.”
Of course, Beckham has repeatedly expressed a desire to become the game’s highest-paid receiver, and it was not too long ago that we heard his next contract could approach $100MM in total value. However, the three-time Pro Bowler did imply that he may have to settle for a little less in order to obtain long-term security. He said, “Who doesn’t want to get more money? Everybody does. Realistically, you try to be realistic with yourself. You see what happened over the offseason. Can’t really worry about everybody else. Just let them figure it out, and whenever it happens it will happen.”
Unlike some of his fellow stars, Beckham has elected to participate in training camp, which is in keeping with his belief that holdouts are not an effective negotiating tool. He understands that he could suffer an injury in camp that could at the very least throw a major wrench into negotiations, but he believes that is a risk worth taking. After all, he is just happy to be on the field again after a difficult 2017 campaign that was cut short by a broken ankle.
The ankle injury not only kept Beckham off the field, but it had a dramatic impact on his personal life as well. During his news conference, Beckham said that there were times over the last year when he would fall asleep on the couch and then have to crawl up the stairs because of the limitations created by the injury.
And, although he was fully cleared to return to practice in June, he says he truly started to feel like his old self over the course of the past month. He said, “It’s kind of over the last month I’ve taken a huge stride. I remember maybe two months ago it wasn’t as smooth and I wasn’t getting out of cuts. You kind of get that frustration and want to get back to where you were at. But now that I’m here, it has been a lot of hard work put it. Lot of doctors, lot of treatment, lot of rehab, lot of pain that you’ve been in. It’s nice to be here now.”
By all accounts, Beckham and new head coach Pat Shurmur have a strong relationship, and it appears that Beckham is appreciative of the clean slate that the Giants’ offseason coaching and front office overhaul provided. He did not say whether there is a deadline for getting a deal done, but it sounds as if it could happen soon. Despite his injury-marred 2017, Beckham’s age (25), talent, and productivity to date will likely result in a major payday (especially in light of the booming wide receiver market). A five-year pact worth around $80MM, including $35MM in full guarantees, seems like a reasonable estimate.