Andrus Peat - Pro Football Rumors

Contract Restructures: Panthers, Cowboys, Giants, Saints, Eagles, Steelers

March 10th, 2021 at 5:51pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

It’s that time of year when teams are frantically maneuvering ahead of free agency. Due to the cap falling because of COVID-19, things are even more hectic than ever. We’ve seen a whole bunch of contract restructures come in, and there will be a whole lot more. Let’s catch you up on the latest batch and their financial implications:

The Panthers restructured Christian McCaffrey‘s contract recently, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network tweets. They converted $7MM of his $8MM base salary into a signing bonus, which freed up about $5.6MM in cap space for 2021. Almost a year ago McCaffrey signed his record-breaking extension that has him locked up through the 2025 season.
The Cowboys have had a busy week with Dak Prescott‘s massive extension now in the books, and they made a trio of moves to help clear some space. Dallas restructured the deals of Zack Martin, Tyron Smith, and La’el Collins, a source told Todd Archer of ESPN.com. The reworking of the three offensive linemen’s contracts cleared up about $17MM in cap space for Jerry Jones. As Archer notes, these moves have now gotten Dallas under the cap for 2021.
The Giants just cut top offensive lineman Kevin Zeitler as they look to clear cap space to keep guys like defensive linemen Leonard Williams and Dalvin Tomlinson. The Zeitler release isn’t the only shuffling they’re doing, as they also restructured the contract of tight end Levine Toilolo, and Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com tweeted the details. Rather than a procedural restructure like you see with star players, Toilolo actually took a pay-cut to stay with the team. He had been scheduled to make $2.95MM this year but agreed to reduce that to $1.6MM, saving the Giants north of $1MM against the cap.
We’ve got four other restructures to pass along, courtesy of this tweet from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The Saints restructured the deals of safety Malcolm Jenkins to save $3.4MM and offensive lineman Andrus Peat to save $6MM. New Orleans has the worst cap situation in the league, and they desperately needed moves like this to do things like franchise tag safety Marcus Williams.
The Eagles saved $2.4MM by reworking the deal of offensive lineman Isaac Seumalo. Philly is right up there with New Orleans in terms of bad cap situations, so GM Howie Roseman is likely far from done here.
The Steelers saved $880K by adjusting fullback Derek Watt‘s contract. Not exactly front page news here, but it should shore up Watt’s spot on the 2021 roster. T.J. and J.J.’s brother signed a three-year, $9.75MM pact last offseason.

South Rumors: Saints, Kelly, Titans, Jaguars

August 24th, 2020 at 5:35pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Saints are currently without one of their starting offensive linemen. That may be the case for a bit. Andrus Peat suffered a broken thumb, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Recently re-signed to a lucrative deal, Peat is set to be out up to three weeks, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com notes. While the sixth-year guard could be ready for Week 1, the Saints have an experienced interior-line swing man ready to fill in. Former Vikings starter Nick Easton is now working in Peat’s place at left guard. Easton replaced an injured Peat as a starter in six games last season.

Here is the latest from the South divisions:

Alvin Kamara and the Saints began extension talks last week, but the sides may be far apart on terms. A deal is not particularly close at this juncture, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.football tweets. Kamara is going into the final year of his third-round rookie contract. The three-time Pro Bowler will make just $2.13MM this season. Kamara joins Dalvin Cook, Aaron Jones and Joe Mixon among 2017 running back draftees in negotiations. This group will battle a few hurdles — short running back primes, the position’s low value, poor returns on a few recent high-end running back deals and a likely 2021 cap reduction — as they attempt to secure long-term deals.
Jameis Winston has hired a new agent. The new Saints QB2 has selected Reggie Johnson of Stellar Group to represent him, Greg Auman of The Athletic tweets. Johnson will be Winston’s third agent since 2018. The former Buccaneers starter may be a long-term option for the Saints, but unlike Drew Brees and Taysom Hill, Winston is signed only through 2020. He could also be set to test the market again next year.
Ryan Kelly said in May he and the Colts were discussing an extension. With a contract season looming, the Pro Bowl center insists he would like to stay in Indianapolis long-term, Joel Erickson of the Indianapolis Star notes. Given Kelly’s age (27) and importance to a Colts O-line that ranks as one of the NFL’s best, he is in line to become the NFL’s highest-paid center — perhaps by a notable margin. Rodney Hudson‘s second Raiders deal currently resides atop the center list, at $11.25MM per year. This AAV figure sits more than $3MM below the top guard salary and nearly $11MM south of the leading tackle contract.
The Titans worked out one of their former linebackers Monday. Will Compton auditioned for the team, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Compton, 30, played 12 games for the 2018 Titans, starting two. He last played for the Raiders, suiting up for nine Oakland contests in 2019.
An assault case against Jaguars fullback Bruce Miller has been dismissed, according to Miller’s attorney (via Matt Barrows of The Athletic, on Twitter). Miller, 33, has not played since 2015. After allegedly assaulting a man and his son in 2016 in San Francisco, Miller was charged with aggravated assault and elder abuse.

Saints To Re-Sign Andrus Peat

March 20th, 2020 at 12:05pm CST by Zachary Links

Andrus Peat isn’t going anywhere. On Friday, the Saints announced a new five-year deal for the guard/tackle.

The new five-year deal will pay him $57.5MM with $33MM guaranteed, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter). That contract will keep the 26-year-old (27 in November) in place through his prime years, helping to secure the Saints’ offensive line for Drew Brees and Taysom Hill.

Peat, the No. 13 overall pick in the 2015 draft, has been a Saints regular for the past five years with appearances at left tackle, left guard, right tackle, and even some snaps as an extra blocker/tight end. All in all, he’s got 60 starts under his belt at every O-Line spot, except for center. In that span, the Saints have ranked No. 1 in the league in points per game while surrendering only 124 sacks.

Peat played well in 2019, too. He earned a Pro Bowl nod for his work in an injury-shortened ten-game season.

South Notes: Godwin, Peat, Marrone

December 19th, 2019 at 12:10pm CST by Rory Parks

Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin left Sunday’s victory over Detroit due to a hamstring injury, and since Tampa Bay is out of playoff contention, Godwin’s breakout 2019 campaign may end prematurely. Curiously, fellow wideout Mike Evans has already been placed on IR with a hamstring ailment, and yet another receiver, Scott Miller, also left the Lions game due to a hamstring issue.

That has led some to question the way in which head coach Bruce Arians is running things, and as Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times writes, Arians has conceded that he may be overworking his receivers. “We’ll be talking with our sports science people about it,” Arians said. “Maybe I’ve overworked them in practice, the receivers, because we need the reps. Our quarterbacks need the reps, so we run them this time of the year more than I would probably like to, but we need the reps.” The hamstring injuries may all just be a coincidence, but it’s worth keeping an eye on the team’s new sports science department moving forward.

Jenna Laine of ESPN.com says Arians has already ruled Godwin out for Week 16 but hopes he will play in the 2019 finale.

Now for more from the league’s south divisions:

Good news for the playoff-bound Saints. As Mike Triplett of ESPN.com tweets, New Orleans guard Andrus Peat, who has missed the last five games with a broken arm, has returned to practice. The team’s offense has performed just fine in Peat’s absence, but the Saints would surely like to have their 2018 Pro Bowler back in action.
The Saints continued to bolster their secondary by adding safety D.J. Swearinger on Wednesday, just two days after claiming CB Janoris Jenkins. As Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle observes, the Saints did their due diligence in the DB market before signing Swearinger, working out nine total players (Twitter link). That list included recognizable vets DeShawn Shead and Kentrell Brice.
The Jaguars parted ways with executive vice president Tom Coughlin yesterday, and many believe that head coach Doug Marrone will be axed at the end of the season. However, Marrone said he has not heard anything in that regard from owner Shad Khan, nor does he expect to (h/t Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk). Meanwhile, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk believes that, since Khan did not also fire Marrone when he fired Coughlin, Marrone (and GM Dave Caldwell) could be back in 2020. But Coughlin seems to have been fired largely as a result of a damning NFLPA report that surfaced Monday, so the fact that Marrone and Caldwell will stay on board for the rest of 2019 probably doesn’t mean very much.
The Colts tried to shore up their CB position by signing Briean Boddy-Calhoun yesterday, and as Wilson tweets, Indy also brought in CB Ken Crawley for a tryout.

Saints’ Andrus Peat To Miss Time

November 13th, 2019 at 3:48pm CST by Zachary Links

Saints guard Andrus Peat will undergo surgery for a broken arm, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) hears. After the operation, he’s expected to miss six weeks of action.

Peat, 26, was a 2015 first-round pick and a Pro Bowler in 2018. He’s currently playing out his fifth-year option and is ticketed for free agency in March, so it’s an especially bad time for an extended absence.

Since ’15, Peat has appeared in 64 games, including 59 starts. He’s been playing reasonably well this season, though not quite at his previous Pro Bowl level.

The Saints offense, by and large, has been clicking tremendously. They’re 7-2, even after Sunday’s surprising loss to the Falcons. Next up: a shot at NFC South redemption against the Bucs, in Tampa.

In the interim, the Saints are expected to turn to Will Clapp as their new starter at left guard.

NFC Rumors: Massie, Saints, Jernigan

January 26th, 2019 at 4:04pm CST by Sam Robinson

On the surface, the Saints reluctantly enter their offseason without many avenues to improve their roster. They traded away their 2019 first-, third- and fourth-round picks and stand to hold less than $20MM in cap space. However, they may be open to another extension that knocks down Drew Brees‘ NFL-high $33.5MM cap figure. Another place the team could look to for potential cap savings is Andrus Peat‘s contract. The 2015 first-round pick has a $9.625MM fifth-year option salary, but with those deals guaranteed for injury only, The Athletic’s Larry Holder writes (subscription required) the guard is not a lock to return to New Orleans in 2019. Four of the Saints’ top six cap charges stand to go to offensive linemen, and Peat graded out as Pro Football Focus’ worst full-time guard this season. Peat broke his hand in December, but having played in both New Orleans’ playoff games, passing the fifth-year option physical before the new league year seems like a decent bet.

As its Super Bowl LIII representative prepares to trek to Atlanta, here is the latest from the NFC:

With Bobby Massie re-signing to stay in Chicago long-term, the Bears knocked out a key piece of their offseason task list. They now have three of their starting offensive linemen signed to veteran contracts. Massie will become one of the highest-paid right tackles in the game, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweeting the 29-year-old blocker will earn more than $8MM annually. While guarantees and base salaries are not yet known, Massie will become the fifth right tackle to make $8MM-plus per year.
Shifting back to the Saints, they will lose a staffer to the college ranks. Offensive assistant Joe Brady will become LSU’s passing game coordinator, Bruce Feldman of The Athletic tweets. Brady spent two years with the Saints.
The Eagles signed Timmy Jernigan to a four-year, $48MM extension late in the 2017 season. But the reigning Super Bowl champs may be experiencing buyer’s remorse. Jernigan ($13MM cap hit in 2019) will not be back in Philly without a restructure, Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia writes. The Eagles would have to eat a $6MM dead-money charge by releasing the defensive tackle but would gain $7MM in cap savings. This marks the NFL’s worst cap situation, with the Eagles more than $14MM over the projected salary ceiling.

NFC Notes: Peat, Cowboys, Eagles, Crowder

January 14th, 2019 at 6:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

Andrus Peat committed four penalties during the Saints‘ divisional-round win over the Eagles, and part of the reason for his struggles surfaced. The veteran guard suffered a broken hand in Week 17, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. NOLA.com’s Josh Katzenstein notes the Saints’ starting left guard broke his right hand. The injury during New Orleans’ meaningless regular-season finale led to Peat undergoing surgery during the bye week, Schefter adds. Against the Eagles, Peat played through “serious pain.” It is unclear if or how much Peat aggravated his injury on Sunday, and it’s not certain if he will be available to face the Rams. Though, Peat’s postgame comments do not point to him resting against Los Angeles. He played through ankle and quadriceps injuries this season and suffered a concussion. This was also the second straight year the Saints’ playoff opener has involved a Peat injury. The former first-round pick suffered a broken fibula during New Orleans’ wild card-round win last year and missed the Saints’ divisional game in Minnesota.

As the coaching carousel spins, here is the latest from the NFC’s non-coaching news cycle:

The Cowboys are among the league leaders in projected cap space, at $54MM-plus, but they are not expecting to be major players in free agency. “It doesn’t mean that we won’t play free agency at all; we just won’t be paying a high-profile free agent, more than likely,” VP Stephen Jones told 105.3 The Fan (via Jon Machota of the Dallas News on Twitter). “Never rule anything out all the way, but I wouldn’t necessarily say that’s going to be our strategy going into the offseason.” Dallas is likely saving money to pay its glut of extension-eligible young talents. Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper, Byron Jones and Jaylon Smith are now all eligible for re-ups. With Dallas also making Zack Martin the richest guard in football last year, big outside investments may not be realistic this offseason.
Speaking of playing through injury, Eagles wideout Alshon Jeffery played through cracked ribs against the Saints, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. An MRI last week revealed the injury. Jeffery dropped a Nick Foles pass that ricocheted into Marshon Lattimore‘s arms. This setback likely will not be nearly as troublesome for Jeffery to surmount as the one he played through in 2017. Jeffery’s previous shoulder issue caused him to miss all of Philadelphia’s offseason program and sidelined him into the 2018 season.
While a scenario may exist involving the Eagles franchise-tagging Foles and attempting to trade him, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com notes (video link) expects the quarterback to hit the free agent market. Foles’ impending exit would further tether the Eagles to Carson Wentz, who has suffered season-ending injuries in back-to-back years. But Wentz said Monday doctors have assured him this back injury is not expected to linger long-term.
Elsewhere in the NFC East, the Redskins do not want to let another of their mainstay wide receivers walk as a free agent. Washington allowed both Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson to depart in 2017, and while neither 30-something pass-catcher has matched his Washington work since, the Redskins have not been the same at wideout either. Jay Gruden said (via ESPN.com’s John Keim) the team wants to try to re-sign Jamison Crowder “for sure.” Crowder will not be looking at Jarvis Landry money but is a sneaky-interesting name that could be on the market. Although injuries plagued Crowder this season, limiting him to nine games (career-low 388 receiving yards), it will not be especially cheap for Washington to bring him back. “It’s a great time to be a slot receiver,” Crowder said, via Keim.

Saints Pick Up Andrus Peat’s Option

April 13th, 2018 at 9:54am CST by Zachary Links

The Saints have officially exercised the 2019 fifth-year option on offensive lineman Andrus Peat, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. Peat has become the first 2015 first round draft pick to formally have it picked up.

The decision to pick up Peat’s contract for 2019 was something of a no brainer. After previous experiments with the former No. 13 overall pick at left tackle, he switched over to left guard over the past two years and performed well. Peat has 29 starts to his credit between 2016 and 2017.

Per the terms of the fifth-year option, Peat’s 2019 season will be guaranteed for injury only. Should his performance decline, the Saints can get out of the deal with no fiscal penalty.

For first-rounders picked outside the top 10, the option is determined by the determined by the average of the third through 25th top salaries at that position. In time, we’ll know Peat’s exact figure.

Peat finished the year on injured reserve after he suffered a broken ankle in the first round of the playoffs.

Saints Place Andrus Peat On IR

January 10th, 2018 at 2:52pm CST by Zachary Links

The Saints have placed left guard Andrus Peat on injured reserve. Peat will not be able to play in Sunday’s divisional round game against the Vikings or in the NFC Championship Game or Super Bowl, should the Saints make it.

Peat suffered a broken fibula against the Panthers last weekend and had to be carted off of the field. Losing the third-year pro stings for New Orleans, particularly after losing Zach Strief early in the season. Senio Kelemete, who subbed in for Peat’s against Carolina, is expected to get the start.

Peat’s played both guard and tackle with the Saints since being taken No. 13 overall in 2015. Over the last two years, he has missed just two regular season games.

Saints’ Andrus Peat Breaks Fibula

January 7th, 2018 at 5:24pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Saints lost a key player to injury during their strong first-half performance against the Panthers, with Andrus Peat being carted off.

New Orleans’ left guard suffered a broken fibula, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter). The third-year talent will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine if there is ligament damage.

This represents another blow to a Saints offensive front that already lost Zach Strief early in the season and has seen Terron Armstead battle injuries as well. While New Orleans has received quality work from its offensive front, with first-round pick Ryan Ramczyk proving to be a quick study at right tackle, it will have to compensate for Peat now.

Peat’s played both guard and tackle with the Saints since being taken No. 13 overall in 2015 and played in 15 Saints games this season, missing one because of a groin injury. He started 15 games in 2016. Senio Kelemete took Peat’s place at left guard.