Martellus Bennett Announces Retirement
Tight end Martellus Bennett announced on his Twitter account (link) that’s he’s “moving on” from football after a 10-year career in the NFL. Though Bennett never used the word “retire” in his Twitter post, he confirmed in to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero that he is retiring from the league. 
“I’ve decided to move on from the world of football and into the fantastical and wondrous world of creativity,” Bennett said in a Twitter message. “I’m beginning what I believe to be my life’s work.”
In a mid-season Instagram post while with the Packers, Bennett said he anticipated this past season would be his last. However, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported last month that Bennett intended on returning for the 2018 season.
Bennett, 31, appeared in seven games for the Packers last season before being waived and picked up by the Patriots. The Patriots released Bennett earlier this month after he ended the season on injured reserve with a shoulder injury. He totaled 30 catches for 286 yards receiving without a touchdown catch this past season between his time with the Packers and Patriots.
The Cowboys originally took Bennett in the second round of the 2008 draft out of Texas A&M. He spent four years with the Cowboys before playing a season with the Giants and then four with the Bears. Bennett’s Pro Bowl campaign came with the Bears in 2014 when he tallied career highs in receptions (90) and receiving yards (996) while catching six touchdowns. He had appeared in at least 14 games in eight of his first nine seasons before appearing in just nine last year.
It’s been an eventful day for the Bennett family. Earlier Friday, Michael Bennett was indicted on felony charges in Texas for his involvement in an incident at NRG Stadium during Super Bowl LI.
Broncos Acquire T Jared Veldheer
The Broncos have announced the acquisition of Cardinals offensive lineman Jared Veldheer in exchange for a sixth-round pick in the upcoming draft (on Twitter). Troy Renck of Denver 7, ABC, first reported that the two sides were nearing a deal involving Veldheer and a late-round pick (on Twitter).
Veldheer, 30, is expected to step in and start at right tackle for the Broncos opposite former first-round pick Garett Bolles at left tackle. The Broncos were previously set to go with Menelik Watson at right tackle after he started the team’s first seven games there last season but was then placed on injured reserve with a calf injury.
Veldheer started 13 games for the Cardinals last season before being placed on injured reserve with a broken ankle. He’s appeared in 106 games over an eight-year career, making 101 starts. The Raiders originally selected Veldheer in the third round of the 2010 draft out of Hillsdale. He’s spent the bulk of his career at left tackle before shifting to the right side of the line last season.
The veteran offensive lineman is set to enter the final season of a five-year, $35MM deal signed with the Cardinals and is slated to have a cap hit of $10.16MM for the upcoming season. The Broncos entered the day with $21.28MM in available cap space, which ranked No. 12 in the NFL.
The addition of Veldheer helps round out the Broncos offensive line. Along with Bolles at left tackle, they’re set to return Max Garcia at left guard, Matt Paradis at center and Ronald Leary at right guard.
The deal creates $3.25MM in dead cap space for the Cardinals but does open up $6.9MM in available space. Newly-signed Andre Smith will likely take over at right tackle for the Cardinals with John Wetzel taking over as the team’s starting swing tackle. The Cardinals also helped beef up their offensive line this offseason by adding right guard Justin Pugh in free agency.
Bills Release DE Ryan Davis
The Bills have cut ties with defensive end Ryan Davis, a source told Eric Edholm of Pro Football Weekly (on Twitter). Davis, 29, appeared in all of the Bills’ regular-season contests last season, including their postseason game, and recorded three sacks. 
The Jaguars originally signed Davis as an undrafted free agent in 2012 out of Bethune-Cookman. Davis recorded a career-high 6 1/2 sacks in 2014 and spent 2016 with the Cowboys before signing a two-year $2.2MM deal with the Bills last offseason.
The Bills are set at defensive end, with Shaq Lawson and Jerry Hughes entrenched as the team’s starters. Davis became more expendable with the Bills’ addition of Trent Murphy in free agency.
Davis enters a defensive end free-agent market that’s headlined by Robert Ayers, Charles Johnson, Benson Mayowa and Jared Crick. Davis was due to have a cap hit of $1.28MM for the upcoming season. His release marked the second loss to the Bills’ defense Friday as free-agent cornerback E.J. Gaines agreed to terms with the Browns.
Cardinals Sign CB Bene Benwikere To 1-Year Deal
The Cardinals added a bit of depth to their secondary Friday by signing cornerback Bene Benwikere to a one-year deal, per the team’s official website. Benwikere is familiar with new Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks. The Panthers selected him in the fifth round of the 2014 draft and he spent the first three seasons of his career in Carolina. 
Benwikere, 26, appeared in 12 games for the Cowboys last season. He also spent time on the practice squads for the Bengals, Dolphins and Packers after the Panthers released him early in the 2016 season.
The Cardinals have plenty of holes to fill in their secondary this offseason, with Tramon Williams and Tyrann Mathieu off the roster and Tyvon Branch and Justin Bethel still unsigned as unrestricted free agents. The team also still has interest in free-agent cornerback Marcus Cooper, according to Mike Jurecki of Arizona Sports Station 98.7 FM (on Twitter). Cooper played with the Cardinals in 2016 and was cut by the Bears last week.
In three seasons with the Panthers, Benwikere appeared in 27 games and made 14 starts, along with two starts in the 2014 postseason. The Panthers cut ties with Benwikere after Julio Jones collected 300 receiving yards in a game against the Panthers in October 2016.
2018 NFL Draft Pick Capital By Team
While each NFL team is organically handed seven draft picks per season, trades involving draft choices and the compensatory pick process ensures that many clubs end up with more (or fewer) than their original seven selections. As always, you can view the complete 2018 draft order, but here we’ll look at how much draft capital each club has amassed.
Let’s take a look at how many draft picks each NFL club currently possesses:
Updated 4-8-18 (1:47pm CT)
12 picks
- Green Bay Packers
11 picks
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Oakland Raiders
10 picks
- Dallas Cowboys
9 picks
- Buffalo Bills
- Cleveland Browns
- Indianapolis Colts
- San Francisco 49ers
8 picks
- Arizona Cardinals
- Baltimore Ravens
- Carolina Panthers
- Denver Broncos
- Houston Texans
- Kansas City Chiefs
- Los Angeles Rams
- Miami Dolphins
- Minnesota Vikings
- New England Patriots
- New Orleans Saints
- Seattle Seahawks
- Washington Redskins
7 picks
- Atlanta Falcons
- Chicago Bears
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Los Angeles Chargers
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
6 picks
- Detroit Lions
- New York Giants
- New York Jets
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Tennessee Titans
Of course, not all draft picks are created equally, as holding more early-round selections is eminently more valuable than collecting mid-to-late round picks. Using Chase Stuart of Football Perspective‘s draft value chart, we can calculate how many draft capital points each team owns heading into the 2018 NFL draft:
- Cleveland Browns: 102.8
- Indianapolis Colts: 74.1
- Buffalo Bills: 72.9
- New York Giants: 65.8
- Denver Broncos: 62.6
- New England Patriots: 53.5
- Green Bay Packers: 52.5
- San Francisco 49ers: 52.2
- Oakland Raiders: 49.4
- Cincinnati Bengals: 49.2
- Chicago Bears: 46.6
- Miami Dolphins: 45.6
- Dallas Cowboys: 44.4
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 44.0
- New York Jets: 43.8
- Arizona Cardinals: 41.8
- Baltimore Ravens: 41.1
- Los Angeles Chargers: 40.8
- Washington Redskins: 39.5
- Detroit Lions: 38.5
- Tennessee Titans: 36.0
- Atlanta Falcons: 33.2
- Carolina Panthers: 33.0
- Pittsburgh Steelers: 32.9
- Jacksonville Jaguars: 31.8
- Kansas City Chiefs: 31.2
- Seattle Seahawks: 30.7
- Minnesota Vikings: 30.4
- New Orleans Saints: 30.2
- Houston Texans: 27.6
- Los Angeles Rams: 22.7
- Philadelphia Eagles: 22.2
Dolphins To Sign QB Brock Osweiler
The Dolphins have reached an agreement with quarterback Brock Osweiler, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’s a one-year deal, tweets Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald.
Osweiler’s new deal will reunite him with Adam Gase, who worked with Osweiler as Denver’s quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator from 2012-14. In Miami, Osweiler will take the place on longtime backup Matt Moore, who was never expected to re-sign with the Dolphins. Other quarterbacks on the Dolphins’ roster include starter Ryan Tannehill, David Fales, and Brandon Doughty.
The 27-year-old Osweiler didn’t get a chance to start for the Broncos until after Gase had left the building, and the former second-round pick’s greatest NFL success came in a 2015 campaign where he started seven games for the eventual Super Bowl champions. It’s been a whirlwind for Osweiler since that time: he inked an ill-fated deal with the Texans, was dealt to the Browns, and spent the 2017 season back in Denver.
While the top tier of free agent quarterbacks came off the board fairly quickly, there are still a number of backup types available. Aside from Stanton, the list of No. 2 passers on the market includes Moore, Blaine Gabbert, Derek Anderson, Drew Stanton, and Geno Smith.
Jets Have Largest Offer To Ndamukong Suh
The Jets have the largest offer out to free agent defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Jordan Schultz of Yahoo Sports was the first to report (via Twitter) that New York had expressed interest in Suh.
Gang Green hadn’t been previously mentioned as a suitor for Suh, and his potential destinations were thought to be narrowed to the Rams, Saints, and Titans. The Jets have the most cap space of any of the teams involved in the bidding, and while they haven’t yet set up a visit with Suh, they have explained how they would deploy the veteran interior defender.
New York utilizes a 3-4 scheme, and while Suh has only played in 4-3 looks during his career, shifting fronts doesn’t appear to be a problem, as both Los Angeles and Tennessee also use a 3-4 defense. The Jets’ once-vaunted defensive line is now without the Muhammad Wilkerson/Sheldon Richardson/Damon Harrison trio from 2015, and Suh would presumably replace Mike Pennel as a starting end opposite Leonard Williams.
Suh is now 31 years old, but he’s still a dominant player: he managed 20.5 pressures and and 4.5 sacks from his defensive tackle position while grading as the NFL’s No. 5 interior defender in 2017, per Pro Football Focus. He’s also incredibly durable, as he hasn’t missed a single contest since 2012. Last season, Suh played a whopping 883 snaps, the second-most of any defensive tackle in the league.
While the Jets are willing to offer Suh the most money, he won’t necessarily follow the dollars, per Rapoport. The Rams, Saints, and Titans each made the postseason in 2017, while New York is still embarking on a rebuild, so Suh could potentially forgo the largest contract offered in order to sign with a contender.
Eagles DE Michael Bennett Indicted On Felony Charge
The district attorney for Harris County, Texas has indicted Eagles defensive lineman Michael Bennett on a felony charge after he reportedly injured a 66-year-old paraplegic while attempting to gain field access during Super Bowl LI, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link), who adds a warrant has been issued for Bennett’s arrest.
The NFL is “looking into” Bennett’s indictment, a league spokesperson told Eliot Shorr-Parks of NJ.com (on Twitter).
Bennett, of course, was traded from Seattle to Philadelphia earlier this month, and the Eagles apparently did not know this indictment was coming down, tweets Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer. While details are sparse at the moment, Bennett could be subject to an NFL-imposed suspension regardless of the legal outcome.
Bennett, a three-time Pro Bowler, is scheduled to suit up for an Eagles defensive line that also includes Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, Haloti Ngata, Derek Barnett, and Chris Long. He’s under contract through 2020, although Philadelphia could exit the deal without any penalty.
Browns To Sign CB E.J. Gaines
The Browns have reached an agreement with free agent cornerback E.J. Gaines, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link). It’s a one-year deal worth $4MM, while an additional $1MM is available via incentives, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com first reported Cleveland was nearing a deal with Gaines.
After ranking 27th in pass defense DVOA in 2017, Cleveland has overhauled its secondary this offseason. Not only did the Browns trade veteran Jason McCourty to the Patriots in exchange for pennies, but they’ve also signed free agents T.J. Carrie and Terrance Mitchell to multi-year deals. With Gaines in tow, Cleveland will now have a bit of depth in a defensive backfield that also includes Jamar Taylor and Briean Boddy-Calhoun.
Heading into free agency, PFR ranked Gaines as the fourth-best cornerback on the market and the No. 18 free agent overall. While other corners such as Trumaine Johnson, Malcolm Butler, and Aaron Colvin quickly flew off the board, Gaines’ market took longer to develop. He wasn’t exactly wanting for interest, though, as the Jets, Cardinals, and Texans all expressed some level of intrigue in Gaines.
Gaines, 26, appeared in 11 games for the Bills a season ago after being traded as part of the Sammy Watkins deal. During that time, Gaines ranked 12th in Pro Football Focus’ cornerback grades and ninth in Football Outsiders’ success rate. A former sixth-round pick, Gaines has started 37 total games and posted three interceptions during his four-year NFL career.
With Gaines off the market, the free agent cornerback class is now comprised of options such as Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Bashaud Breeland, Delvin Breaux, Dontae Johnson, and Jeremy Lane.
[RELATED: Browns Depth Chart]
Cowboys Sign WR Allen Hurns
Free agent receiver Allen Hurns plans to sign with the Cowboys, as he tells Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’s a two-year deal worth $12MM, report Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link) and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link).
The Cowboys officially announced the deal Saturday morning (on Twitter).
Dallas has yet to make major additions on either side of the ball, but it clearly wanted to address its receiving corps. While the Cowboys have yet to make a decision on veteran Dez Bryant‘s fate, Jerry Jones & Co. reportedly made a push for Sammy Watkins before he signed with the Chiefs, and also signed a complementary pass-catcher in Deonte Thompson.
Hurns is only 26 years old, but he hasn’t had much success since the 2015 campaign. During that season, Hurns served as the Jaguars’ No. 2 receiver behind Allen Robinson and posted a 64/1,031/10 line. Subsequently, Hurns’ role in the Jacksonville offense was drastically scaled back, while injuries have also limited him. He failed to top 500 yards receiving in either 2016 or 2017.
Hurns will join Bryant, Thompson, Cole Beasley, Terrance Williams, and Ryan Switzer in the Cowboys’ receiving corps. Dallas, cap-strapped as ever, could save $8.5MM by cutting ties with Bryant (and $12.5MM if he’s a post-June 1 release), but Williams is almost certainly stuck on the Cowboys’ roster despite his lack of production. The Cowboys would pay more to cut Williams than release him prior to June 1, and they wouldn’t net any savings even if Williams was a post-June release.
A number of clubs, including the Bears, Bills, Saints, Texans, Jets, Raiders, Panthers, Browns, and Ravens also expressed interest in Hurns, but Hurns only visited Dallas and New York.
[RELATED: Cowboys Depth Chart]