NFL Rumors - ProFootballRumors.com

Broncos Franchise Demaryius Thomas

March 2nd, 2015 at 1:17pm CST by Dallas Robinson

1:17pm: The Broncos have confirmed that Thomas received the non-exclusive tag, and passed along a statement from John Elway indicating that the team continues to work toward a long-term with the wideout (Twitter links). If no multiyear pact is reached, Thomas’ one-year franchise salary for 2015 will be $12.823MM.

MONDAY, 12:53pm: Thomas has officially been tagged by the Broncos, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).

SUNDAY, 6:33pm: Barring any unforeseen contract agreement, the Broncos will place the franchise tag on receiver Demaryius Thomas tomorrow, reports Mike Klis of the Denver Post. The tag will guarantee Thomas approximately $12.797MM for the 2015 season.

Per Klis, the Broncos will use the more popular non-exclusive franchise tag, which will allow Thomas to have talks with other teams but will entitle Denver to two first-round picks if they decide to not match an offer sheet. As Klis notes, this is highly unlikely to happen, so Thomas is almost certainly a lock to play for the Broncos in 2015.

Denver was widely expected to use the tag, and speaking at the combine earlier this month, Broncos general manager John Elway confirmed that the club would utilize the tag on Thomas if a long-term contract could not be worked out. Elway said the the team would still like to work out an extension with Thomas, and now the two sides will have until July 15 to negotiate a multi-year agreement.

The 27-year-old Thomas was set to be a part of a loaded free agent receiver crop, which includes Dez Bryant (who is also expected to be tagged tomorrow), Jeremy Maclin, Randall Cobb, and Torrey Smith. Thomas, who finished last season with 111 receptions for 1,619 yards and 11 touchdowns, would have been in line for a contract averaging close to $14MM per season. A long-term deal with the Broncos should come close to that figure, but with Denver now holding the leverage, the AAV expectations might be tempered.

Thomas has shown some willingness to take a hometown discount, indicating that he enjoys playing with future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning. But Manning, at age 38, could be entering his final season in the NFL, and it’s unclear if Thomas would show the same inclination to stay in Denver were Manning retired.

After accounting for the franchise tag, the Broncos are projected to have about $16.5MM of cap space to work with as free agency approaches. The club and Manning are reportedly discussing some sort of contract restructure, so Denver could conceivably carve out a little extra financial room. As Klis reported earlier today, the Broncos are expected to be active participants in free agency, targeting help at offensive line, tight end, and safety, but they aren’t expected to retain some of their own free agents, such as Julius Thomas, Terrance Knighton, and Orlando Franklin.

Both Demaryius Thomas and Dez Bryant were long believed to contenders for the franchise tag, and now other clubs will have until tomorrow to decide whether to apply their own tag. Justin Houston (Chiefs) and Jason Pierre-Paul (Giants) are each expected to be tagged by their respective teams, while Devin McCourty (Patriots) and Jerry Hughes (Bills) are also candidates for the tag. Check out PFR’s Luke Adams’ recap of all the franchise tag candidates here.

Giants Use Franchise Tag On JPP

March 2nd, 2015 at 1:05pm CST by Luke Adams

As expected, the Giants have officially used their franchise tag on Jason Pierre-Paul, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). Steve Serby of the New York Post first reported last month that the club would use the non-exclusive franchise tag on JPP if no long-term deal was reached, and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com confirmed as much last week.

Although Pierre-Paul got off to a slow start in 2014, he finished strong, and his 77 tackles and 12.5 sacks were his best totals since he was a First-Team All-Pro in 2011. The South Florida product – who turned 26 on Saturday – ranked as the seventh-best 4-3 defensive end in the league last season, according to Pro Football Focus’ grades (subscription required).

Word of the Giants’ decision to officially place the franchise tag on Pierre-Paul comes on the heels of the NFL’s announcement of this year’s $143.28MM, which solidified the franchise tag amounts. As a defensive end, JPP will be in line for a one-year tender of $14.813MM, though he won’t necessarily sign that offer immediately.

As Paul Schwartz of the New York Post tweets, the Giants and Pierre-Paul are expected to continue working on a multiyear deal, with the hopes of agreeing on something more long-term. Such an agreement would give the 26-year-old some long-term security, and would allow the team to reduce his cap hit for 2015, creating additional flexibility.

Of course, the non-exclusive tag means Pierre-Paul will also have the opportunity to explore the open market when free agency officially begins next week. However, any team interested in signing him would have to do so via an offer sheet, rather than signing him outright. And if the Giants chose not to match that offer sheet, Pierre-Paul’s new team would have to part with two first-round picks. As such, it’s unlikely that he’ll play anywhere besides New York next season.

Pierre-Paul becomes the fourth player to be franchised today. Dez Bryant, Demaryius Thomas, and Justin Houston were also franchised by their respective clubs.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Dolphins Cut Cortland Finnegan, Nate Garner

March 2nd, 2015 at 1:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The Dolphins began making cap-related cuts last week when they released wide receivers Brian Hartline and Brandon Gibson, and the team is far from done. According to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald (via Twitter), the club parted ways with cornerback Cortland Finnegan today. Barry Jackson of the Herald adds (via Twitter) that agent Drew Pittman has confirmed the team is also releasing his client, offensive lineman Nate Garner, who is still dealing with concussion-related issues.

Finnegan, 31, was one of the league’s worst corners in 2013, according to Pro Football Focus advanced metrics (subscription required). PFF ranked Finnegan 109th out of 110 qualified corners, with a grade of -19.7 in just seven games. So it came as a bit of a surprise when Miami inked the former Ram to a two-year, $11MM deal last offseason. Finnegan was a little better for the Dolphins, but still placed just 74th out of 108 corners, with a -4.4 grade in 2014, per PFF.

By cutting Finnegan, the Dolphins will remove his $5.45MM base salary and a $25K workout bonus from their books for 2015, reducing his $6.475MM cap hit to just $1MM in dead money.

As for Garner, he missed a chunk of the 2014 season due to ongoing headache and migraine issues, and it’s not clear if he’ll continue his playing career, or if he’ll even be able to. The offensive lineman’s release creates $1.65MM in cap savings for the Dolphins, leaving just $167K in dead money on the books for 2015.

Cowboys Franchise Dez Bryant

March 2nd, 2015 at 12:38pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

MONDAY, 12:38pm: The Cowboys have officially franchised Bryant, according to Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports (via Twitter).

SATURDAY, 6:17pm: Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones has informed Dez Bryant‘s agent that the team will place the franchise tag on the wide receiver on Monday, the Dallas Morning News’ David Moore reports.

According to Moore, Jones broke the news to Tom Condon, Bryant’s agent, Friday afternoon. The franchise tag protects the Cowboys from the possibility of Bryant hitting the free agent market March 10. The tag is expected to be worth $12.8MM for receivers in 2015.

On whether the Cowboys and Bryant can reach a long-term deal, Jones said, “It’s unrealistic to think it (contract) will happen now so we will use the tag,’’ per Moore.

The two sides have until July 15 to work out a new contract. Otherwise Bryant will play next season under the tag.

Bryant has established himself as an elite, durable wideout during the first five seasons of his career. The 26-year-old has racked up 381 catches and 56 touchdowns while appearing in 75 of a possible 80 regular-season games since Dallas selected him 24th overall out of Oklahoma State in 2010. He hasn’t missed a game since 2011 and is coming off his third straight season with at least 88 catches and 12 TDs. The 6-foot-2, 220-pounder set a new career high in 2014 in scores (16) and tied his previous best yards-per-catch mark (15.0). As a result, Bryant earned First-Team All-Pro honors and his second consecutive Pro Bowl invitation.

While Dallas will get to keep one of its stars for at least another season, the bad news is that Bryant’s $12.8MM salary for 2015 will take up a significant chunk of its cap space. The Cowboys have approximately $18.60MM in available room, according to OverTheCap.com, but more than two-thirds of that money will go to Bryant. That’s an unpleasant reality for a team that could lose reigning rushing champ DeMarco Murray, among others, to free agency in the coming weeks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Bucs To Trade Or Cut Anthony Collins

March 2nd, 2015 at 12:15pm CST by Luke Adams

A year after signing offensive lineman Anthony Collins to a five-year, $30MM contract, the Buccaneers are shopping him in search of a taker, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). If the Bucs can’t work out a deal, they’ll likely cut Collins, says Rapoport. Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times first reported last week that the club would likely part ways with some of its 2014 signees, including Collins (Twitter link).

Collins’ contract with the Bucs didn’t include any sort of bonuses, and simply includes a $6MM base salary in each of the next four seasons. While that makes it easier for the Bucs to make a move, given the lack of dead money on the deal, there probably isn’t a team out there at the moment willing to pay $6MM annually for a player who was a healthy scratch for the final few weeks of the 2014 season.

Having spent his first six NFL seasons in Cincinnati, Collins never had an extended run as a full-time player before 2014, starting no more than seven games in any season for the Bengals. He was excellent in his 673 offensive snaps in 2013, never recording a negative grade in a game, according to Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics (subscription required). However, he was unable to translate that solid part-time production into an above-average – or even passable – performance as Tampa Bay’s left tackle in 2014.

Per Over the Cap, $3MM of Collins’ $6MM salary for 2015 is currently guaranteed, with the other half set to become guaranteed next Friday. So if the Bucs do plan to cut the 29-year-old, it will almost certainly happen within the next 10 days or so.

FA Rumors: Pats, Dockett, Langford, Freeney

March 2nd, 2015 at 11:40am CST by Luke Adams

Let’s check in on a few Monday rumors on current free agents, as well as free-agents-to-be….

With this afternoon’s franchise and transition tag deadline looming, the Patriots are more likely to use their tag on kicker Stephen Gostkowski than safety Devin McCourty, sources tell Mike Reiss of ESPN Boston. Reiss cautions that the situation is “fluid” and that things could change by 3:00pm central time. However, if the Pats do decide to trade Gostkowski, it would mean McCourty could potentially hit the open market next week, as far and away the best safety available. It would be surprising if the Pats let McCourty get away, but that would at least seem to bode well for the return of Darrelle Revis.
According to agent Drew Rosenhaus, free agent defensive lineman Darnell Dockett is generating “a lot of interest” on the free agent market, writes Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic. Rosenhaus is expecting Dockett to have a new home by the end of the week. As for the Cardinals, who released Dockett last week, they’re still hoping to bring the veteran defender back — Somers reports that they’ve offered a one-year deal worth up to $4MM through incentives, with a base value of $2.5MM.
Former Rams defensive tackle Kendall Langford, cut by St. Louis last week, is visiting the Lions today, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). It’s an interesting tidbit of news, as Detroit attempts to lock up its own free agent defensive tackles, such as Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley. For now, we should probably assume that Langford is just a Plan B, or a potential depth piece, but we heard earlier today that the team won’t franchise Suh, so there’s no guarantee he returns to Detroit.
After mulling the possibility of retiring, veteran Chargers pass rusher Dwight Freeney has decided to continue his playing career and return for a 14th season, writes Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Freeney doesn’t have a contract for 2015, so he’ll have to find a taker, but I imagine he’ll still draw plenty of interest — despite recording only 3.5 sacks in 2014, the 35-year-old recorded 53 overall quarterback pressures, according to Pro Football Focus’ data (subscription required).
Linebacker Brad Jones, who was released by the Packers last month, recently visited the Titans and has a visit lined up today with the Eagles, reports Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean (via Twitter). Of the two veteran linebackers cut this offseason by Green Bay, A.J. Hawk received most of the headlines, but Jones is another player who could still contribute elsewhere.

2015 NFL Salary Cap Set At $143.28MM

March 2nd, 2015 at 11:19am CST by Luke Adams

The salary cap for the 2015 NFL league year has been set at $143.28MM. Jordan Raanan of NJ.com (Twitter link) was the first to report the ’15 figure, which has since been confirmed by a handful of reporters around the league.

The latest projections had the cap coming in at $143MM, so this is just a marginal uptick from that figure, and will subsequently increase the projected franchise and transition tag numbers very slightly. Here are the official non-exclusive franchise tag figures for 2015 based on the official cap of $143.28MM, via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links):

Quarterback: $18.544MM
Running back: $10.951MM
Wide receiver: $12.823MM
Tight end: $8.347MM
Offensive line: $12.943MM
Defensive end: $14.813MM
Defensive tackle: $11.193MM
Linebacker: $13.195MM
Cornerback: $13.075MM
Safety: $9.618MM
Kicker/Punter: $4.126MM

And here are the transition tags for the coming year, per Albert Breer of the NFL Network (via Twitter). These figures double as the fifth-year option amounts for 2016 for the top 10 picks from the 2012 draft:

QB: $16.155MM
RB: $9.037MM
WR: $10.971MM
TE: $7.071MM
OL: $11.096MM
DE: $11.958MM
DT: $9.314MM
LB: $11.058MM
CB: $11.082MM
S: $8.263MM
K/P: $3.716MM

Per NFLPA executive director George Atallah (via Twitter), the Rams were the only team in the NFL that chose not to carry over cap space to 2015. Atallah adds (via Twitter) that the Jaguars are the team with the most carryover room, at nearly $22MM.

This is the second consecutive year that the cap has increased by $10MM.

Jacoby Jones Visiting Bengals, Titans

March 2nd, 2015 at 10:34am CST by Luke Adams

After being released by the Ravens last week, free agent wide receiver and return man Jacoby Jones has a visit lined up with one of Baltimore’s division rivals. According to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com (via Twitter), Jones is meeting with the Bengals. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun reports (via Twitter) that the former Raven also has a visit lined up with the Titans, and Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean tweets that the Cincinnati visit will happen today, followed by the Tennessee meeting tomorrow.

Jones, 30, returned kicks and punts for Baltimore in 2014, but his role on offense was significantly reduced — after being targeted 68 times and hauling in 37 passes in 2013, Jones received just 18 targets and caught nine passes in 2014. He also averaged 30.6 yards on 32 kickoff returns, and 9.2 yards on 30 punt returns.

Teams targeting Jones in free agency this month will likely be doing so with the intent of having him return kickoffs, and perhaps punts as well. At this point in his career, the former third-round pick likely won’t have a significant role in an offense — he’ll probably be about fourth on the depth chart for whichever he team he ultimately lands with.

Eagles Notes: McCoy, Cole, Maclin

March 2nd, 2015 at 10:22am CST by Luke Adams

Despite rumors to the contrary, the Eagles haven’t approached running back LeSean McCoy about restructuring his contract, two sources close to the situation tell Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). Agent Drew Rosenhaus has since confirmed McLane’s report, as Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports tweets. Not taking into account Adrian Peterson‘s $15.4MM cap number, which figures to be addressed at some point, McCoy’s $11.95MM figure for 2015 makes him the only running back with an eight-digit cap hit, which makes the deal a candidate to be restructured. So far though, it doesn’t seem as if there’s any urgency on the team’s part.

Here’s more on McCoy and the Eagles:

As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes, McCoy’s contract doesn’t include any bonuses or guarantees in March, so there’s no real rush for the Eagles to do anything with it. Practically speaking, if the Eagles want to adjust the running back’s deal, they’ll probably do so before the offseason program begins, but they don’t necessarily have to until closer to the regular season.
While there have been no contract talks yet with McCoy, the Eagles have engaged in discussions with veteran edge defender Trent Cole to bring him back for the 2015 season, a source tells Eliot Shorr-Parks of NJ Advance Media. Cole’s $11.625MM cap number is Philadelphia’s second-largest for 2015, behind McCoy’s, making him a candidate to be released if the two sides can’t reach an agreement to reduce that figure.
Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com lays out the possible outcomes for Jeremy Maclin‘s contract situation with the Eagles, examining the possibility of a long-term contract, a franchise or transition tag, or the wideout hitting the open market. Philadelphia has until 3:00pm central time today to tag Maclin, if the team decides to go that route.

Chiefs Use Franchise Tag On Justin Houston

March 2nd, 2015 at 9:49am CST by Luke Adams

9:49am: Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (all Twitter links) confirms, via a league source, that the Chiefs used the non-exclusive tag on Houston, meaning other teams can pursue him, if they so choose. For his part, Houston doesn’t seem all too pleased with being franchised — he’s already considering waiting until Week 10 to sign his franchise tender, according to PFT. Florio adds that Houston will consult with the NFLPA to decide whether to fight for a defensive end franchise salary rather than a linebacker salary. As was the case with Graham last year, I doubt that fight would be a fruitful one.

8:37am: As expected, the Chiefs have ensured that star pass rusher Justin Houston won’t reach the open market as a fully unrestricted free agent next week. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter), the team has officially placed the franchise tag on the NFL’s reigning sack leader.

After recording back-to-back seasons with double-digit sacks in 2012 and 2013 – including 11 in 11 games in ’13 – Houston had a career year this past season, racking up 22 sacks, 68 overall tackles, and four forced fumbles. Houston was far and away the top-ranked 3-4 outside linebacker by Pro Football Focus’ metrics (subscription required), logging an impressive 87 total quarterback pressures for the season.

By using the franchise tag on Houston, the Chiefs will be formally tendering the 26-year-old a one-year contract offer expected to be worth north of $13MM. Houston will be free to sign that tender at any time, but Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star reports (via Twitter) that’s not expected to happen right away.

Assuming Kansas City is using the non-exclusive tag, Houston is free to negotiate with rival suitors starting next Tuesday. If Houston were to sign an offer sheet with another team in that scenario, the Chiefs would have five days to match it — if they didn’t match the offer, they’d receive two first-round picks from Houston’s new team as compensation.

Of course, whether or not Houston signs the one-year tender offer, a long-term deal with the Chiefs remains a possibility. A year ago, for instance, Jimmy Graham was franchised by the Saints, and – despite a handful of rumors about other teams eyeing him, ultimately he worked out a multiyear agreement with the team just before the July 15 deadline.

While Houston is the first player to officially be tagged today, Dez Bryant, Demaryius Thomas, and Jason Pierre-Paul are all expected to be franchised as well, and others may join them by 3:00pm central time.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.