Giants To Trade Olivier Vernon To Browns
The Giants are trading Olivier Vernon to the Browns, according to Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). In return, the Giants will receive guard Kevin Zeitler (Twitter link). The Giants had originally agreed to send the No. 132 pick to Cleveland, with the Browns shipping No. 155 back to New York, but the two side have since canceled that portion of the swap.
The deal gives the Browns a formidable defensive end combo between Vernon and Myles Garrett. The swap also allows the Browns to focus on other areas of need next week, rather than overpaying for valued edge rushers.
Vernon inked a massive five-year, $85MM deal with the Giants in 2016. A few years later, the Giants found themselves looking to unload him or potentially release him outright. Vernon is still productive, but he no longer profiles as one of the best edge rushers in the NFL. Even at his time of signing, his contract was a function of an inflated pass rushing market that continues to be player friendly.
Vernon is due $15.5MM in each of the two remaining years on his deal. The Browns had roughly $77MM in cap space entering Friday, but it’s not immediately clear whether the Giants will be chipping in towards what Vernon is owed. Such an arrangement is not unheard of. In the Case Keenum trade between the Broncos and Redskins, for example, the Broncos agreed to pay half of Keenum’s 2019 salary.
Vernon, 28, gave the Giants a career-high 8.5 sacks in his first season with the club. He’s continued to get to the QB with 22 sacks over the course of three years, but injuries have cost him nine games over the last two campaigns. Last year, he averaged four pressures per contest in eleven games.
The Giants, meanwhile, pick up one of the league’s best interior lineman in the trade. Zeitler was Pro Football Focus’ No. 6 ranked guard last season and is midway through a five-year, $60MM deal. The 29-year-old is set to make $10MM this season, though much of that hit will be absorbed by the Browns.
Bills, Steelers Won’t Complete Antonio Brown Trade
Early Friday morning, the Bills appeared to be on the cusp of acquiring Antonio Brown from the Steelers. But, for one reason or another, the deal was scuttled. 
“We inquired on Antonio Brown on Tuesday, and kept talks open with the Steelers. We had positive discussions, but ultimately it didn’t make sense for either side,” GM Brandon Beane said in a statement. “As great a player as Antonio Brown is, we have moved on and our focus is on free agency.”
Ultimately, the deal was 86’d because Brown made it clear that he did not want to go to Buffalo, Albert Breer of The MMQB (on Twitter) hears. Now, there are “very few options left” for the Steelers/Brown, according to a source who spoke with Breer.
The Steelers hoped to move Brown by the end of the business day, but they may have to extend their timeline. At varying points, the Redskins, Raiders, and Titans were thought to be on the leaderboard, but their level of interest is unclear. Meanwhile, it’s a bit of a time sensitive matter for the Steelers – Brown is due a $2.5MM roster bonus on March 17, so they’re hoping to unload him before that date hits. They’d also probably like to trade Brown before the start of free agency in order to have a clearer picture of their own needs and finances.
The Brown sweepstakes will roll on for at least a little while longer and it could drag for months if Brown is intent on hand-picking his destination.
Broncos To Trade Case Keenum To Redskins
Case Keenum is be D.C.-bound. On Thursday, the Redskins and Broncos hammered out a trade to send the quarterback to Washington, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 
The trade will send Keenum and a Broncos 2020 seventh-round pick to D.C. in exchange for a 2020 sixth-round pick, according to Mike Klis of 9News (on Twitter). Meanwhile, Keenum has agreed to rework his contract in order to facilitate the deal.
Keenum had the opportunity to earn $21MM in ’19 under the terms of his old contract, but the revised pact will give him $7.5MM in total. The Broncos will pay Keenum a $500K restructure bonus and contribute $3.5MM towards Keenum’s $7MM salary. Meanwhile, Washington will pay their $3.5MM half of the tab. Ultimately, the Broncos saved themselves a few million and the Redskins found an inexpensive veteran to compete with Colt McCoy for the starting gig.
Keenum, 31, joined the Broncos on a two-year, $36MM deal prior to the 2018 campaign. Unfortunately, his season with Denver did not go as planned as the Broncos slumped to a 6-10 mark. This offseason, he was squeezed out of his starting job when the Broncos acquired Joe Flacco from the Ravens.
With the Redskins, Keenum may have an opportunity to take over for Alex Smith, who is fighting his way back from a gruesome leg injury. He’s not long removed from leading the Vikings to the NFC Championship Game during a 2017 season in which he ranked second in Total QBR, seventh in adjusted net yards per attempt (the passing metric most correlated with winning), fifth in interception percentage, and seventh in sack percentage.
On the flipside, Keenum’s 2018 marks tell a different story. Among 33 qualifying quarterbacks, Keenum finished 30th in Total QBR, 28th in ANY/A, 21st in interception percentage, and 11th in sack percentage. A year after ranking first in Football Outsiders‘ DVOA (meaning he was extremely effective on a per-play basis), Keenum fell all the way to 29th in 2018.
With the No. 15 pick in the draft, the Redskins are unlikely to land either Kyler Murray or Dwayne Haskins, so a short-term solution such as Keenum might make the most sense for them. There’s also the free agent market to consider, but Smith’s $20.4MM cap hit could be prohibitive in the pursuit of someone like Nick Foles.
Steelers, Maurkice Pouncey Agree To Extension
The Steelers and Pro-Bowl center Maurkice Pouncey have agreed to a two-year extension worth $22MM, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). With a new money average of $11MM per season, Pouncey is slated to become the NFL’s highest-paid center in 2020, provided that he is not leapfrogged in the interim. Pouncey was already signed through 2019, so the new pact will take him through the 2021 season.
Pouncey, not to be confused with brother Mike Pouncey of the Chargers, has been with the Steelers since being drafted No. 18 overall in 2010. He has earned a Pro Bowl nod in every full season since then, giving him seven selections in total. Pouncey also earned First-Team All-Pro honors in 2011 and 2014.
Last year, Pouncey ranked as the No. 14 center in the NFL, a bit below his usual spot. Still, he passed the Steelers’ naked eye test and the club is moving to keep the 29-year-old (30 this summer) in the fold for years to come.
Earlier this week, the Steelers took another step towards continuity on the offensive line by assigning a second-round tender to B.J. Finney.
DRC Ends Retirement; Wants To Play In 2019
Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie‘s retirement didn’t last long. The cornerback has been reinstated and wants to play in 2019, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
DRC, 33 in April, abruptly retired from football in late October. His announcement came days after Raiders coach Jon Gruden did not use him on a single snap in a one-sided loss to the Colts. It appears that the cornerback still has the passion to play, just not for the Raiders.
In 2017, Rodgers-Cromartie appeared in 15 games (six starts) for the Giants, managing 31 tackles, a half-sack, and one pass defensed while grading as the NFL’s No. 58 cornerback, per Pro Football Focus. Still, the signs of aging were there. On 25 targets, DRC allowed 7.2 yards per pass, more than double his 2016 average of 3.5. DRC also made headlines as he butted heads with coach Ben McAdoo and was briefly suspended by the team. Then, last year, he didn’t do a whole lot for the Raiders’ sagging defense.
The two-time Pro Bowler figures to draw interest on the open market, though he might have to wait until the second wave of free agency to find a home.
Ravens Re-Sign TE Nick Boyle
The Ravens re-signed tight end Nick Boyle, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). It’s a three-year, $18MM deal to keep Boyle off of the free agent market. 
We’ve heard a surprising amount of buzz about Boyle in recent weeks. Blocking tight ends don’t often garner a ton of attention, but Boyle reportedly had interest from about 20 teams this offseason. Those clubs will have to look elsewhere for blocking expertise as Boyle is now under contract with Baltimore through the 2021 season.
Boyle, 26, caught just 23 passes for 213 yards last season. However, he provided quality run and pass blocking across his 670 snaps. Last year, Boyle graded out as the No. 23 ranked tight end in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. Interestingly, even without much in the way of offensive production, he placed ahead of Eric Ebron on the list.
Boyle’s early career was marred by a pair of suspensions for performance-enhancing drugs, but he has missed just one game over the last two years. In that two-year span, the Ravens have rushed for a league-high 4,297 yards with Boyle as a tight end/fullback.
Teams Inquiring On Cardinals’ Josh Rosen
Multiple teams inquired about quarterback Josh Rosen’s availability at the combine last week, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com hears (Twitter links). However, the Cardinals have yet to give any indication that they are willing to move on from him. 
As Schefter notes, this doesn’t mean that the Cardinals will not shop Rosen at some point, but it is interesting that they have not responded to overtures so far. Lately, all signs have been pointing to the Cardinals using the No. 1 pick on quarterback Kyler Murray, but team brass could still be deciding between Murray and this year’s non-QB options.
The Redskins, for example, have considered making a run at Rosen, but they’re also thinking about drafting a signal caller of their own.
“I think where we are at this point, and like I said earlier, if there’s a quarterback there that we like at 15, 9 out of 10 we’ll go that route,” exec Doug Williams said. “If it’s not somebody we like, we’ll go with Colt and if we got to go out and get a veteran to work with him until that time comes, that’s probably what we’ll do.”
Rosen, 22, went 3-10 as the Cardinals’ starter last year. He completed just 55.2% of his throws with 11 touchdowns against 14 interceptions, but there were a myriad of issues with Arizona’s offense.
Browns Release LB Jamie Collins
The Browns released Jamie Collins, according to a team announcement. The linebacker was due more than $10MM for 2019, an unpalatable amount given his lack of production last season. 
“We want to thank Jamie for his contributions to the Cleveland Browns,” said general manager John Dorsey in a statement. “These types of decisions are never easy. Jamie is a respected veteran player in this league and we wish him the best as he continues his career.”
The Browns first tried to trade Collins, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), but they were unable to find a taker. The Browns also tried to move Collins at last year’s trade deadline, but couldn’t get a deal done.
Of course, that’s not to say Collins is washed up. Last year, Collins registered 104 tackles and four sacks across 16 games and graded out as just the No. 58 ranked LB in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus. However, his contract made him the highest-paid traditional linebacker in the league and he has not been performing at that level.
Collins joined the Browns in a mid-season trade with the Patriots in 2016. Collins was outstanding in New England, but the Patriots were unwilling to make a sizable commitment to him as his contract was drawing to a close. He also didn’t help his case by allegedly “freelancing” on defense in order to pad his stats.
Releasing Collins will give the Browns an additional $9.25MM in cap room versus just $2.5MM in dead money. The Browns now have approximately $81MM in cap space, giving them the third-highest total in the NFL.
Steelers To Trade Antonio Brown By Friday?
It sounds like Antonio Brown won’t be with the Steelers for much longer. Teams that have spoken to the Steelers about a potential Brown trade have been told that a deal is expected to be in place by Friday, league sources tell Rich Cimini of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
This week, the Raiders and Redskins emerged as real contenders for Brown while the Broncos, Cardinals, and Eagles appear to be out of the mix. The Jets, who were previously linked to Brown, are no longer interested, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Still, Rapoport hears that three new teams have joined the fray in the last 48 hours.
It’s surprising to hear that the Jets are pulling out of the Brown sweepstakes given their ample cap room and clear need for a playmaker. Mike Maccagnan, a GM who was given a reprieve despite a spotty track record in the draft and free agency, needs to show results in 2019 in order to keep his job, and a Brown trade would have been a clear move towards winning right now.
At this time, it certainly appears the Raiders are in the lead for Brown given their consistent interest throughout the process and their clear need for receivers. They also have $72MM in cap space – giving them the room necessary to absorb AB’s sizable contract – and a stockpile of draft picks that can be used to outbid other suitors.
Ravens To Release Eric Weddle
The Ravens are following through with a rumored cost-cutting move. They will release Eric Weddle, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter).
This move will save the team $7.25MM. Weddle was going into the final year of his contract. He is about to join a crowded safety market.
Eric DeCosta was not definitive about keeping Weddle or fellow secondary 30-something Jimmy Smith. Baltimore’s secondary has been one of the NFL’s best during Weddle’s run, and he made three Pro Bowls during his three Ravens seasons. Weddle, 34, said at the offseason’s outset he would retire if he wasn’t a Raven, but the former first-round pick subsequently walked that back.
Tuesday will add Weddle and Landon Collins to the market. Barring pre-free agency deals, they will join Earl Thomas, Adrian Amos, Lamarcus Joyner, Tre Boston, Tyrann Mathieu, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, Glover Quin and others in free agency’s deepest position.
Weddle did not miss a game during his Ravens run and combined for 10 interceptions between the 2016-17 seasons. The Ravens, who did not use their franchise tag on C.J. Mosley, will now hold more than $25MM in cap space. Their acclaimed defense may lose multiple big names, however.