Bashaud Breeland - Pro Football Rumors

North Notes: Tate, Packers, Browns, Burns

October 31st, 2018 at 4:40pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Lions are only one game out of the NFC North lead, but they nonetheless made the decision to trade their most productive wide receiver since Calvin Johnson to the Eagles. Golden Tate is now in Philadelphia, and some Lions staffers are “very surprised” about that transaction, Albert Breer of SI.com notes. This led Breer to wonder if there was a conflict between Tate and the Lions, and a team source informed him that wasn’t the case. Instead, the Eagles’ offer of a third-round pick for a player who was likely on his way out after 2018 was too good to pass up. Tate would have netted the Lions a compensatory pick had he left in free agency, but that selection would’ve come in the 2020 draft. Now, Detroit has an additional Day 2 pick in 2019. Tate’s departure, though, makes any Lions playoff hopes less likely.

Several of the North divisions’ teams made moves before the trade deadline. Here’s more fallout from some others, along with the latest from some other North franchises:

Ty Montgomery‘s fumble on Sunday in Los Angeles didn’t just prompt non-essential Packers to anonymously gripe about the mistake. Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes respected veterans called out the since-traded running back/return man. That, coupled with Montgomery not accepting full responsibility for his mistake and publicly expressing trust issues with teammates, signaled the Packers had to move on from the former third-round pick, per Silverstein. Montgomery stands to finish out his contract year with the Ravens.
The Packers were not happy about the way Ha Ha Clinton-Dix‘s 2017 season ended, with Silverstein writing Green Bay brass believed the 2014 first-round pick avoided tackles in the season finale against the Lions. This helped influence the Packers’ decision to not enter contract talks with Clinton-Dix prior to the 2018 season. While this tactic isn’t uncommon for the Packers, who let established starters Randall Cobb, Bryan Bulaga, Sam Shields and others play out their contract years before re-signing them, it led Clinton-Dix to believe he wasn’t going to be back next season. Hence, the trade to Washington. GM Brian Gutekunst, however, said (via ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky) these trades weren’t meant as a message for the locker room.
As far as replacing Clinton-Dix, the Packers have some interesting options. One NFC scout told Silverstein their best choice might be to move recently added cornerback Bashaud Breeland to safety and play him in tandem with Jermaine Whitehead. Kentrell Brice served as Clinton-Dix’s safety running mate this season. A four-year Redskins starter, Breeland has not played a snap for the Packers yet. Another option, as Demovsky details, would be to play 2017 second-rounder Josh Jones. He’s worked as a special-teamer thus far. Tramon Williams could be an option as well, so Green Bay is not lacking in possible solutions.
The Browns named former Cardinals quarterback Ryan Lindley as their running backs coach today. This is interesting on multiple levels. The 29-year-old now-coach’s highest level of experience came as a San Diego State graduate assistant. Lindley, though, played under new Browns OC Freddie Kitchens with the Cardinals when Kitchens was their QBs coach.
Artie Burns did not play a snap in the Steelers‘ win over the Browns on Sunday. Mike Tomlin said he benched the former first-round cornerback because he was late for a walkthrough, but Burns said Wednesday (via Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) he was back with the starters at practice. Coty Sensabaugh started in place of Burns in Week 8.

NFC Rumors: P. Peterson, Winston, Peters

October 14th, 2018 at 11:10am CST by Rory Parks

We heard last week that the Cardinals were at least willing to listen to trade offers for Deone Bucannon and Haason Reddick, and while GM Steve Keim later threw cold water on those rumors, Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reports that Arizona is not only looking to deal Bucannon and Reddick, but that the team is also open to parting with star cornerback Patrick Peterson. Mike Jurecki of the team’s official website tweets that there is zero chance that the Cardinals move Peterson, but even if that’s the case, it seems apparent that the rebuilding Cards will be busy as we approach the October 30 trade deadline.

Now let’s take a look at a few more items out of the NFC:

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network (video link) reports that Jameis Winston‘s job with the Buccaneers is pretty secure for the time being, but the rest of the season will be critical in determining Winston’s long-term future with the club. He is under club control through 2019 under the fifth-year option, but that option would cost the Bucs $20.9MM and is guaranteed for injury only, so if Winston performs poorly but remains healthy, Tampa Bay could conceivably cut ties after the 2018 season.
La Canfora reports that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell tried to hire Falcons team president Rich McKay in recent years to oversee the league’s football operations, a department that has come under fire for its handling of Bountygate, Deflategate, and other scandals. However, the compensation committee, which has been trying to cut spending, would not authorize the creation of an expensive executive position like that, and there is nothing to indicate that anything will change in that regard, even if McKay were open to such a post (which he apparently was).
Eagles LT Jason Peters suffered a torn biceps against the Giants on Thursday night, but Rapoport tweets that Peters is expected to return and play this season and could miss just a game or two. While Peters has not been performing to his usual standards in 2018, this is still obviously great news for Philadelphia.
Redskins head coach Jay Gruden and cornerback Josh Norman have discussed the halftime incident that garnered some media attention earlier this week and have put the matter behind them, per Rapoport (video link). Rapoport says that Gruden stepped to the front of the locker room to address the team at halftime of Monday’s loss to the Saints, and Norman had his headphones on — as he always does at halftime — and had his back to Gruden, so did not know that the head coach had begun talking. Gruden took exception to what he perceived as a lack of attention and yanked the headphones of off Norman’s head, which obviously made Norman upset. Norman walked away from Gruden and was therefore benched to start the second half, but it does not sound as if this issue will be a lingering problem for the two men moving forward.
The Packers, at 2-2-1, are clearly not performing as well as they would like, and Pete Dougherty of PackersNews.com has a couple of suggestions as to how Green Bay might shake things up. Dougherty believes the team should consider making a change at safety, either by giving Jermaine Whitehead a shot at starting or moving Bashaud Breeland into the rotation (when healthy), and he also believes Robert Tonyan should get more snaps at tight end.

NFC Notes: Panthers, Seahawks, Packers

September 27th, 2018 at 9:56pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Eric Reid‘s one-year deal with the Panthers has a base value of $1MM, but he can earn an additional $900K via other means, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Reid could collect the extra cash via playtime incentives, Pro Bowl incentives, or per-game roster bonuses. Carolina needed extra defensive backs after recently losing Da’Norris Searcy, and Reid should immediately step into the club’s starting lineup opposite Mike Adams. Reid, of course, has protested police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem, but that issue reportedly didn’t come up during his meeting with the Panthers.

Here’s more on Reid and the rest of the NFC:

The 49ers reportedly offered Reid a contract before he signed with the Panthers, and they weren’t the only NFC West club to do so. The Seahawks also discussed a deal with Reid, per Jim Trotter of NFL.com (Twitter link), and were the first team to offer Reid a pact. Seattle negotiated with Reid while fellow safety Earl Thomas was holding out, and Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times reports (via Twitter) the offer was pulled after Thomas reported. Per Condotta, Seattle and Reid couldn’t agree on a salary.
Doug Baldwin returned to Seahawks practice on Wednesday for the first time since going down with an MCL injury in the club’s Week 1 game, according to Brady Henderson of ESPN.com (Twitter link). While Baldwin hasn’t yet been given clearance to play in Week 4, he says he’s “chomping at the bit” to return to action, tweets Curtis Crabtree of Sports Radio KJR. Baldwin’s return would be an obvious boon to a Seattle offense that has given more snaps to Brandon Marshall and Jaron Brown.
Buccaneers safety Chris Conte was the victim of a vicious stiff arm from Steelers tight end Vance McDonald on Monday night, but the veteran defensive back was actually playing through a torn PCL, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Conte was placed on injured reserve earlier this week, but given that his recovery timeline is just six weeks, it’s conceivable he could return later this season. Tampa Bay will rely on fourth-round rookie Jordan Whitehead at safety for the time being.
Cornerback Bashaud Breeland originally inked a three-year, $24MM deal with the Panthers this offseason, but after a freak injury resulted in a failed physical, the veteran defensive back was forced to take quite a pay cut on his one-year deal with the Packers. Breeland signed a minimum salary benefit pact, as Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com writes, so he’ll collect a base salary of $790K plus a $90K bonus. However, under the rules of the MSB, Breeland will only count against Green Bay’s salary cap at the rate of a second-year player ($630K).

Packers To Sign CB Bashaud Breeland

September 25th, 2018 at 5:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

Bashaud Breeland‘s eventful stay in free agency appears to be over. The Packers’ cornerback troubles will lead them to sign Breeland, Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com tweets. It’s a one-year deal, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo tweets.

Green Bay placed Davon House on IR earlier this afternoon and was without Kevin King in its Week 3 loss in Washington, and the Packers will bring in the Redskins’ former No. 2 corner to help. The Packers on Tuesday worked out Breeland, David Amerson and fellow corner Arrion Springs, NFL reporter Howard Balzer tweets.

Nearly a third of the league secured visits from Breeland, who took part in meetings in all four American time zones by attending summits with the Colts, Cardinals, Raiders, Chiefs, Ravens, Browns, Patriots, Dolphins and Buccaneers. Breeland met with the Colts twice.

A nixed Panthers deal set Breeland on his complicated course during the offseason. A foot injury suffered in March led to Breeland’s $8MM-AAV Carolina contract being nullified. It’s highly unlikely his Packers deal is in that neighborhood. Breeland, though, was one of the top cornerbacks available when free agency began. He agreed to the Panthers deal quickly before the subsequent injury changed his offseason trajectory.

Breeland will join a corner corps flush with young talent. The 2014 fourth-round pick will now be a part of a group housing a 2017 second-rounder in King, a 2018 first-rounder in Jaire Alexander and 2018 second-rounder Josh Jackson. Tramon Williams rounds out the Green Bay group.

Breeland was a full-time starter with the Redskins, lining up with Washington’s first-string defense in 58 of the 60 regular-season games he played during his four-year stay in the nation’s capital. He will now begin his age-26 season, likely with an intent to impress for another run at free agency in 2019.

Buccaneers Meet With CB Bashaud Breeland

September 11th, 2018 at 5:28pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Buccaneers met with free agent cornerback Bashaud Breeland this week, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

Tampa Bay was torched by Drew Breees, Michael Thomas, and the rest of the Saints’ passing attack on Sunday, so the club is looking for all the help it can get. The Bucs, already short on cornerback talent with veteran Brent Grimes inactive, saw Vernon Hargreaves go down with injury in Week 1, leaving rookie Carlton Davis as the club’s top pass defender.

Breeland, 26, hasn’t been wanting for interest this offseason, as he’s either met with or been linked to the Raiders, Ravens, Browns, Colts, Chiefs, and Jets. However, no club has yet to sign Breeland, and while injury issues are surely playing a part in most teams’ decision not to ink the veteran defensive back, the Ravens — for one — believe he’s asking for too much money.

Breeland was originally a fourth-round Redskins pick in 2014 draft. A Clemson product, Breeland has been a starter from day one, totaling eight interceptions in 58 starts during his four-year career. Last season, Pro Football Focus ranked Breeland as the No. 50 cornerback among 121 qualifiers.

Breeland, of course, agreed to a three-year, $24MM deal with the Panthers earlier this year, but that contract was voided after he failed a physical. A foot injury that was subsequently infected is reportedly the root cause of Breeland’s health question marks.

Dolphins Unlikely To Sign CB Bashaud Breeland

August 14th, 2018 at 7:49pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Dolphins are unlikely to sign free agent cornerback Bashaud Breeland after meeting with him last week, according to Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald.

Miami is searching for a starting corner to play opposite Xavien Howard, but it doesn’t appear as though Breeland is healthy enough to play immediately, per Salguero. Breeland, of course, agreed to a three-year, $24MM deal with the Panthers earlier this year, but that contract was voided after he failed a physical. A foot injury that was subsequently infected is reportedly the root cause of Breeland’s health question marks.

Breeland, 26, hasn’t been wanting for interest this offseason, as he’s either met with or been linked to the Raiders, Ravens, Browns, Colts, Chiefs, and Jets. However, no club has yet to sign Breeland, and while injury issues are surely playing a part in most teams’ decision not to ink the veteran defensive back, the Ravens — for one — believe he’s asking for too much money.

For now, the Dolphins are hoping one of Tony Lippett, Cordrea Tankersley, or Torry McTyer proves capable of playing alongside Howard as a starter. Aside from Breeland, other available corners include Adam Jones, Jeremy Lane, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Kayvon Webster, and Orlando Scandrick.

Bashaud Breeland To Visit Dolphins

August 11th, 2018 at 8:22pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Cornerback Bashaud Breeland‘s tour of NFL cities continues. Breeland will visit the Dolphins on Sunday, according to Josina Anderson of ESPN (Twitter link).

Breeland is one of the biggest names left on the free agent market, and has taken a number of visits recently. He recently worked out for the Patriots, and has also visited the Chiefs, Ravens, Browns and Colts. He’s left all those visits without contracts, and it’s unclear what has been delaying his signing. It’s possible he’s holding out for bigger money.

Breeland initially signed a three-year $24MM deal with the Panthers earlier this offseason, but it was voided due to a foot injury that was discovered. He spent the first four years of his career with the Redskins after Washington took him in the fourth round back in 2014.

The Dolphins have a wide open competition to be the starting cornerback opposite Xavien Howard, so Breeland could be a nice fit. As things currently stand, Torry McTyer, Cordrea Tankersley, and Tony Lippett are battling for the other starting spot. None of them have a ton of starting experience, so it wouldn’t be surprising if Breeland finally finds a home in Miami.

AFC Notes: Dolphins, Carroo, Ravens, Pats

August 9th, 2018 at 8:39pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Dolphins‘ interest in adding cornerback help led them to consider supplemental prospect Sam Beal, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes. However, Miami didn’t hold Beal in as high regard as did the Giants, who sacrificed a third-round pick in order to land the Western Michigan product. Beal, of course, suffered a season-ending injury upon landing in New York, but he could have provided depth to a Dolphins defensive back depth chart currently led by Xavien Howard, Cordrea Tankersley, and Bobby McCain. Given that Miami is still searching for cornerback reinforcements, Jackson speculates the club could be interested in a trade in the coming weeks, but notes the Dolphins are loathe to sacrifice high draft picks.

Here’s more from the AFC:

More from Jackson, who adds that former third-round pick Leonte Carroo is not a lock to make the Dolphins‘ roster, especially given the team’s other options at wide receiver. Miami gave up a haul of draft picks for the right to select Carroo in the 2016, but he’s managed only 10 receptions and 98 yards over two seasons. The Dolphins now have the option to deploy DeVante Parker, Kenny Stills, Danny Amendola, and Albert Wilson, so Carroo — who Jackson notes hasn’t always been in the best shape and has trouble separating from opposing corners — could be a roster casualty. For what it’s worth, Caroo was also considered to be on the Dolphins’ roster bubble in 2017.
While the Ravens‘ recent meeting with free agent cornerback Bashaud Breeland “went well,” the ex-Redskins defensive back is apparently looking for a larger contract than Baltimore is comfortable with, per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic. Breeland, whose three-year, $24MM deal with the Panthers was voided this spring after he failed a physical, has drawn the interest of the Patriots, Jets, Raiders, Chiefs, Browns, and Colts. Clearly, something is preventing clubs from pulling the lever on Breeland, and financial demands or health concerns are both viable options. Baltimore, notably, seemingly has plenty of corner depth with Jimmy Smith, Marlon Humphrey, Brandon Carr, Tavon Young, Anthony Averett, and others in tow.
After being waived earlier this week, wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell is an unlikely candidate to return to the Patriots, according to Doug Kyed of NESN. Mitchell, a third-round pick in the 2016 draft, has struggled with injuries for much of the past two seasons, and Kyed indicates New England was simply tired of waiting for Mitchell to get healthy. The 25-year-old Mitchell passed through waivers unclaimed after being cut, so it’s clear the rest of the NFL is weary of Mitchell’s health issues, as well.

Patriots Still Interested In Breeland

August 8th, 2018 at 11:01am CST by Zachary Links

Bashaud Breeland auditioned for the Patriots this week, but it doesn’t sound like a deal will come together in the next 48 hours. The Patriots conveyed an intention to circle back to the free agent cornerback after the team’s first preseason game on Thursday night, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets.

With a relatively deep group at cornerback, the Patriots likely want to see how their reserves perform before committing to Breeland. The Pats are already rostering Stephon Gilmore, Eric Rowe, Jason McCourty, second-round pick Duke Dawson, and Jonathan Jones, and there are still others to consider. At one point this summer, Maryland product J.C. Jackson was getting more reps in the starting defense than Rowe, so he could find a way to crack the 53-man roster. Similarly, seventh-round pick Keion Crossen and Ryan Lewis have looked sharp at times and Cyrus Jones‘ return ability may keep him in the conversation.

The Patriots have more than $8MM to work with, according to the NFLPA’s top-51 cap room report, so they have the flexibility to sign Breeland if they decide to follow through with a deal. However, Anderson notes that there are multiple teams interested in Breeland, including the Jets, so we could see a bidding war play out for one of the best free agents left.

Patriots Work Out Bashaud Breeland

August 7th, 2018 at 2:59pm CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots are still considering additions to their secondary. With that in mind, they worked out free agent cornerback Bashaud Breeland on Tuesday (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com).

Breeland stands as one of the top defenders still on the market, and he’s garnered previous interest from the Jets, Raiders, Chiefs, Ravens, Browns and Colts. He thought he had a deal with the Panthers back in March, but his three-year deal was voided after he failed his physical. Now that he’s healthy, interest is picking up once again, though it seems unlikely that he’ll match the length of that would-be Carolina contract or the average annual value of $8MM.

To date, Breeland has spent his four-year career with the Redskins, missing only four regular season games during his tenure. The former fourth-rounder had another productive season in 2017, finishing with 50 tackles, 19 passes defended, and one pick-six. Last season, Pro Football Focus ranked Breeland as the No. 50 cornerback among 121 qualifiers, but teams appeared to view him as a borderline CB1 when free agency began.

The Patriots don’t necessarily need Breeland, but they would surely be happy to add him to the fold at the right price. For now, the Pats plan to draw from a cornerback group that includes Stephon Gilmore, Eric Rowe, Jason McCourty, second-round pick Duke Dawson, Jonathan Jones, and seventh-round pick Keion Crossen.