Browns To Re-Sign DE Jadeveon Clowney
After weeks of rumors connecting Jadeveon Clowney to a Cleveland return, that agreement has come to pass. Clowney will stay with the Browns on a one-year deal, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports (on Twitter).
The ninth-year defensive end will stay in Cleveland on a deal worth up to $11MM, USA Today’s Josina Anderson tweets. Incentives are included in this total, making it appear similar to the one-year, $8MM pact Clowney inked with the Browns in 2021. Either way, this will ensure Myles Garrett‘s edge-rushing partner will return — something the All-Pro lobbied for — for a second season.
The sides agreed to this deal Wednesday, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, but needed a few more days to finalize it (Twitter link). Clowney should be expected to earn close to that $11MM total, RapSheet adds, noting that the veteran edge defender turned down multiyear deals worth more than $14MM from other teams to stay in Cleveland (Twitter links).
While this does not stop Clowney’s run of one-year agreements, it does ensure he will return to a team for the first time since his Texans rookie deal expired. Since the Texans executed a tag-and-trade sequence with the Seahawks late in the summer of 2019, Clowney has spent the past three seasons in Seattle, Tennessee and Cleveland. The Browns season marked his most successful, even if the team underwhelmed. Clowney’s nine sacks were his most since 2018, his most recent Pro Bowl year. He finished with 32 pressures (tied for 25th in the NFL) alongside Garrett, who tied T.J. Watt for a league-high 52. Garrett’s 16 sacks were also a Browns single-season record.
Cleveland used a third-round pick on defensive end Alex Wright and traded for ex-Patriots edge contributor Chase Winovich. This duo will now be positioned to be rotational rushers behind the Garrett-Clowney tandem. With the Browns having moved on from 2021 defensive tackle starters Malik Jackson and Malik McDowell, Clowney will be positioned to help as an inside rusher as well. That would allow one of the edge backups to join he and Garrett in sub-packages.
This does continue an interesting run of contracts for Clowney, who led off a talented 2014 draft. Injuries have plagued the former South Carolina super-prospect for most of his career, with knee trouble being at the forefront of his health issues. Clowney did play in 14 games last season, however. But the long-term deal packed with guarantees — along the lines of the ones 2014 classmates Aaron Donald and Khalil Mack received years ago — eluded him. Clowney, 29, played out his Texans contract but will finish his 20s on a year-to-year path.
Still, Clowney earned $15MM in 2019 (via the tag), $13MM in 2020 and $8MM (plus $750K in incentives) last year. In addition to the $30MM-plus he made in five years with the Texans, the three-time Pro Bowler has done pretty well for himself — albeit in unorthodox fashion.
Packers Finalizing Extension With Jaire Alexander
The Packers signed one of their stars to a massive extension earlier this offseason with Aaron Rodgers. They have done so again with cornerback Jaire Alexander. The team is extending him on a four-year, $84MM contract (Twitter link via ESPN’s Adam Schefter). 
As Schefter notes, the deal includes a $30MM signing bonus, which is a record for corners and will allow him to earn $31MM in 2022. Overall, the annual average of $21MM per year represents another high-mark at the position, and makes him the third CB to eclipse the $20MM-per-season plateau (along with Jalen Ramsey and Denzel Ward).
While those numbers are high, only Alexander’s signing bonus is guaranteed. Among cornerbacks, Alexander agreed to deal that slots him only 12th in terms of fully guaranteed money. That said, the Pro Bowl cornerback should be expected to be with the Packers for a while. His 2025 and ’26 base salaries, per Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, jump to $16.2MM and $18.2MM, respectively. Alexander’s deal also includes an $8MM roster bonus in 2024. This transaction continues the Packers’ pattern of not guaranteeing any money to a non-quarterback beyond the first year, Florio adds, noting only they and the Bengals still use this old-school method.
A first round pick in 2018, Alexander has been an immediate starter and anchor of the team’s secondary since his arrival. He was named a Pro Bowler for the first time in 2020, leading to increased optimism for this past season. The 25-year-old was limited to just four regular season games due to a shoulder injury, however. With the team having picked up his fifth-year option, it was already a guarantee he would be suiting up for Green Bay for at least the 2022 campaign.
The two sides began negotiations on a long-term extension this offseason, one which saw plenty of other notable moves being made by the team to try and stay competitive while remaining cap compliant. It came out not long after free agency began that the Louisville product was seeking a deal which would place him at the top of the CB market. This news confirms that he has accomplished that goal.
Schefter adds that Alexander’s cap number will be lowered in 2022 by virtue of his base salary being valued at just over $1MM. That will help the Packers absorb another record-breaking contract as they try to extend their Super Bowl window. Alexander will remain with the team through 2026 at the head of a secondary also featuring the likes of Eric Stokes, Rasul Douglas, Darnell Savage and Adrian Amos.
Saints To Sign WR Jarvis Landry
For the second time in two weeks, a Pro Bowler from New Orleans agreed to sign with the Saints. Following Tyrann Mathieu‘s agreement, the team is signing Jarvis Landry.
The former Dolphins and Browns wide receiver confirmed his decision Friday on Twitter. It’s a one-year deal, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero adds that the contract is worth up to $6MM (video link). Landry visited the Saints before the draft and will now join a receiving corps that, if Michael Thomas can stay healthy, could be formidable. The team has made two major investments at the position this offseason, with the Landry addition coming after a trade-up maneuver for Chris Olave.
Absent Thomas last season, the Saints deployed perhaps the league’s worst receiving corps. The team did not have a 700-yard receiver in 2021. This year’s crew now features the NFL’s single-season reception record holder, a five-time Pro Bowler, and a top-15 pick. The Saints also re-signed former third-rounder Tre’Quan Smith and still have 2021 receiving leader Marquez Callaway under contract. This corps stands to give Jameis Winston a better chance of succeeding after ACL rehab.
Connected to the Falcons and Ravens as well, Landry had been in the mix to return to the Browns. But that door closed recently, with Cleveland — which made Landry a cap casualty in March — intent on seeing how its younger players perform around Amari Cooper. The Saints opted for veteran stability, and the LSU product will be positioned as a key contributor.
Landry, 29, is coming off his worst season as a pro — 52-catch, 570-yard campaign. But Baker Mayfield‘s shoulder injury did well to sink the Browns’ passing attack. Battling an MCL injury last season, Landry also missed five games. Prior to 2021, Landry served as the top receiver on a 2020 Browns team that snapped a 17-year playoff drought. He also has three 1,000-yard seasons and five 900-yard slates on his resume. Used as a slot player in Miami, Landry also has compiled 110- and 112-catch seasons as a pro. The latter showing led the NFL in 2017, leading to the Dolphins franchise-tagging Landry and trading him to the Browns.
Broncos WR Jerry Jeudy Arrested
6:20pm: Jeudy did not commit domestic violence, Arapahoe County Sheriff Tyler Brown said, calling the charge a “very low misdemeanor.” The incident involved only property, via CBS4’s Michael Spencer (Twitter links).
The domestic violence-related charge was issued because the woman involved is the mother of Jeudy’s one-month-old child, via Mike Klis of 9News (Twitter link). The woman involved accused Jeudy of withholding medical records, her wallet and the baby’s car seat, Klis tweets. Jeudy accused the woman of taking one of his three phones, Ryan O’Halloran of the Denver Post adds (on Twitter). Jeudy went into police custody without incident and will meet with a judge Friday morning, Spencer tweets.
3:44pm: Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy was arrested and booked into the Arapahoe County (Colo.) Detention Center this afternoon, authorities announced. The third-year wideout is being held on a no-bond hold, according to the Arapahoe Sheriff (Twitter link).
Authorities have charged Jeudy with second-degree criminal tampering with a domestic violence enhancer. In Colorado, that means tampering with another’s property with the intent to cause “injury, inconvenience, or annoyance to that person or to another.” Jeudy can be released from jail upon approval from a judge, with Tom Pelissero of NFL.com noting such a meeting is likely to occur within the next 24 hours (Twitter link). He was arrested around noon Thursday.
This is not a felony charge, with Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com noting (via Twitter) it is a Class 2 misdemeanor that carries a punishment of a $1K fine and up to a year in prison. It still will fall under the purview of the NFL’s personal conduct policy, which could result in a Jeudy suspension at some point.
Jeudy, 23, came to the Broncos as a first-round pick in 2020. He led the team in receiving as a rookie and posted 467 receiving yards in an injury-shortened 2021 season. The Alabama alum is expected to be a central part of the Broncos’ first Russell Wilson-led offense this season.
DeAndre Hopkins Suspended Six Games For PED Violation
3:32 PM: NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport tweets that Hopkins “withdrew his appeal” of the suspension, making it official that he will miss the opening six weeks of the season without pay.
3:04 PM: The Cardinals made one notable addition to their receiving corps over the weekend, but they will be starting the season without their No. 1. DeAndre Hopkins is being suspended six games for a violation of the league’s Performance Enhancing Drug policy (Twitter link via ESPN’s Adam Schefter). 
The WR room has seen some significant changes this offseason for the Cardinals. Christian Kirk left in free agency, leaving a vacancy for a starting spot at the position. The team then filled that hole with the acquisition of former Raven Marquise Brown. As Schefter notes, that transaction becomes perhaps less surprising given the news of Hopkins’ suspension.
In years past, four games was the benchmark for suspension lengths regarding PED usage. More recently, however, that number has been elevated to six – as the likes of Ryan Anderson and Corey Coleman have found out. This news extends the length of Hopkins’ overall absence, as he missed the final four games of the 2021 regular season (and the team’s playoff loss) due to injury.
That missed time led to the three-time All-Pro posting career-low totals in terms of production. Across his two seasons with the Cardinals, the 29-year-old has posted 1,979 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns. In his absence late in the year, however, Arizona’s offense continued a concerning trend of falling off considerably. The team will be in a similar situation to begin the 2022 campaign.
Hopkins becomes the second big-name wideout to receive a notable ban this offseason. Calvin Ridley will be sidelined for at least the entire 2022 campaign after he wagered on NFL games.
Jets Offered No. 10 Overall For Deebo Samuel
Connected to veteran receivers throughout the offseason, the Jets ended up using the No. 10 overall pick to address the position. Garrett Wilson will be tasked with elevating Zach Wilson, but the Jets did make an offer for Deebo Samuel.
The 49ers turned down the Jets’ proposal — the No. 10 overall pick and a fifth-rounder for Samuel and San Francisco’s second-rounder (No. 61) — according to The Athletic’s Matt Barrows, who adds the Lions made an offer as well. Detroit’s offer was viewed as “light” for the All-Pro wideout. It does not sound like the 49ers seriously engaged with the Jets or Lions, via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (video link).
The Jets were viewed as the frontrunners for Samuel, though the Lions and Packers pursued him as well. Samuel’s trade request surfaced April 20, though the 49ers learned about it well before then. Multiple teams were believed to have offered first-round picks for Samuel. The Lions might have included their No. 32 overall choice in their respective package. Detroit ended up using its No. 32 pick to trade up for Jameson Williams.
Gang Green did not include a first-rounder in its Tyreek Hill offer but did put both its second-round picks and a third in that proposal — one the Chiefs were prepared to accept. Hill’s preference for Miami led to a second-place Jets finish there. The Jets were also linked to using the No. 10 overall pick in a D.K. Metcalf proposal. Given the second-round pick that would have come back to the Jets in the Samuel offer, the 49ers exited the talks to lead the AFC East team to focus on draft options at receiver.
Like a Hill trade, a Samuel swap would have required the Jets to work out a monster extension. Garrett Wilson, though an unproven commodity at the pro level, can be controlled through 2026 on a rookie deal. Still, the events of Thursday night will make matters more difficult for the 49ers. Samuel’s trade request came when all his 2019 receiver classmates were tied to their rookie contracts. A.J. Brown has since agreed to a four-year, $100MM deal.
The 49ers’ initial Samuel offer was believed to be for less than $19MM annually. While Samuel is reportedly now against being used as a running back and may or may not have issues with living in California, the 49ers will certainly need to up their offer now that Brown is tied to his new contract.
Titans Planning To Trade WR A.J. Brown To Eagles
And we’ve got a run on receiver trades! According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter), the Titans are planning to trade wideout A.J. Brown to the Eagles. Tennessee will receive picks No. 18 and No. 101, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). The Eagles will also ink the receiver to a hefty extension; NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports (on Twitter), that the Eagles will sign Brown to a four-year, $100MM extension with $57MM in guaranteed money.
2021 was the first time Brown failed to amass 1,000 receiving yards and 9 total touchdowns in a season. While the season certainly wasn’t up to Brown’s usual standards, it was still a solid overall campaign. Despite being limited to the fewest games of his career, Brown finished with 53 receptions for 869 yards and five touchdowns.
The Eagles were hunting for receiver help this offseason, even after using a 2021 first-round pick on DeVonta Smith. The team was reportedly eyeing some of the draft’s top receiving prospects. Instead, the front office decided to make a splash with an established target for Jalen Hurts.
Brown and the Titans had preliminary talks on an extension, but after a deal couldn’t be reached, the wideout made it clear that he wouldn’t be participating in offseason programs. Considering the deals being handed out to wide receivers, Brown’s camp was seeking a contract that would pay him north of $20MM per season. The Titans could still use a player of Brown’s caliber, but the player’s pending extension and growing frustration ultimately led to a trade.
With their new selection, the Titans have selected Arkansas WR Treylon Burks. The wideout burst onto the scene following a solid 2020 campaign, and he took it to another level in 2021, finishing with 66 receptions for 1,104 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Ravens Trade WR Marquise Brown To Cardinals
The Ravens have traded a former first-round pick. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter), Baltimore has traded wideout Marquise Brown to the Cardinals, reuniting the receiver with his college QB. Cardinals GM Steve Keim announced that the team will also be picking up Brown’s fifth-year option (via Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com).
Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter), the Ravens will trade Brown and pick No. 100 to Arizona for pick No. 23. It’ll be interesting to see which direction the Ravens go with their second selection of the night, and with plenty of talented wideouts still on the board, the team could instantly look to replace Brown in the lineup.
“Hollywood” was the 25th-overall pick in the 2019 draft. Following two up-and-down seasons to start his career, the receiver had a career year in 2021. Brown finished the campaign with a career-high 1,013 yards from scrimmage to go along with six touchdowns. His 92 receptions almost surpassed the totals from his first two seasons combined.
Considering their lack of reliable depth at the position, the Ravens certainly aren’t done at receiver. At the moment, the team’s depth chart is led by Rashod Bateman and Devin Duvernay.
The Cardinals could use some reinforcement at the position after losing Christian Kirk to the Jaguars. DeAndre Hopkins is still around to serve as Kyler Murray’s top targets, but Brown will provide another reliable target for the explosive offense.
Broncos Re-Sign RB Melvin Gordon
Melvin Gordon is sticking around Denver. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the veteran running back is re-signing with the Broncos. It’s a one-year deal. Jordan Schultz was first with the news that the RB was re-signing with the organization.
Earlier this evening, Mike Klis of 9News in Denver reported (on Twitter) that the Broncos were “in discussions” about bringing back the veteran running back for another season. Ryan O’Halloran of The Denver Post was first to tweet that the two sides were discussing a new one-year deal. Per Klis (on Twitter), the deal is worth $2.5MM, with Gordon having the chance to earn up to $4MM.
As Troy Renck of Denver7 tweets, Broncos GM George Paton has kept an open dialogue with the veteran RB throughout the offseason, and new head coach Nathaniel Hackett has also shown interest in having a pair of trusted running backs on his roster. Now, the Broncos can roll forward with their successful 2021 tandem, with Gordon joining 2021 second-rounder Javonte Williams in Denver’s backfield.
Following five years with the Chargers, Gordon inked a two-year, $16MM deal with the Broncos in 2020. The 29-year-old couldn’t expect as much this time around; a report from earlier this offseason indicated that the RB could expect a one-year, $2.5MM deal. The veteran eventually changed agents, going from Fletcher Smith and Damarius Bilbo to Brian Murphy and Joe Panos of Athletes First, and the move apparently garnered him some extra cash.
Gordon stood as one of the best free agent RBs remaining on the market, especially since he’s posted more than 1,100 all-purpose yards in each of his last two seasons. He’s also scored exactly ten touchdowns in each of those Broncos campaigns. Gordon also generated interest from the Ravens before landing back in Denver.
Browns, Denzel Ward Finalizing Extension
The Browns have made a pair of massive additions to their offense already this offseason. Today, they made another big splash, signing cornerback Denzel Ward to a lucrative second contract. Ward is inking a five-year, $100.5MM extension (Twitter link via ESPN’s Adam Schefter). 
Schefter adds that the deal includes $71.25MM in guaranteed money. That figure, along with the $20.1MM-per-year average, makes Ward the highest-paid corner in league history, putting him just ahead of Jalen Ramsey. After being the fourth-overall pick in 2018, the 24-year-old has established himself as a cornerstone of the Browns’ defense.
Ward immediately became a starter in his rookie season, recording three interceptions and 11 pass deflections. He has essentially replicated those totals throughout his four seasons in the league, earning Pro Bowl nods in 2018 and 2021. The former Buckeye has yet to surrender a completion percentage above 60.3%. He was still under contract for the upcoming campaign, scheduled to make $13.3MM on his fifth-year option. Now, he will be in the fold through 2027.
This deal makes Ward the second member of the 2018 draft class to receive an extension. The other, running back Nick Chubb, signed a $36MM extension this past July. Those two players have been integral to the team’s success, leading to their vastly different situations relative to the top pick that year, Baker Mayfield.
Ward will stay in place at the head of a CB room which also features Greedy Williams and Greg Newsome. The team doesn’t own a first-round pick as a result of the Deshaun Watson trade, but their secondary is already in solid shape without one for both the short- and long-term future.