HEADLINES

Jon Beason

Giants Place Jon Beason On IR

October 29th, 2014 at 4:17pm CST by Zachary Links

WEDNESDAY, 4:17pm: The Giants have officially placed Beason on injured reserve, announcing the signing of cornerback Mike Harris to take his spot on the roster. Harris’ signing had been previously reported.

MONDAY, 11:16am: Giants linebacker Jon Beason needs surgery on his toe and will miss the remainder of the season, according to Dan Graziano of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter). The former first-round pick met with a specialist in North Carolina last week and, apparently, the prognosis was not good.

Beason missed most of the offseason thanks to an injury on the same foot. Beason suffered a sesamoid fracture in his right foot, as well as a ligament tear, back in July. Beason represented himself in free agency this offseason and did a pretty solid job on the deal that brought him back to the Giants. Beason got a three-year deal that carries a base value of $16.8MM, with a $4.4MM signing bonus and $6MM in overall guaranteed money.

Pro Football Focus’ metrics ranked Beason 47th out of 55 qualified inside linebackers last season, in large part due to poor grades in pass coverage. However, the ex-Panther piled up 93 tackles and an interception in just 12 games with the Giants. In four games this season, Beason registered 11 tackles.

NFC Notes: Cardinals, Falcons, Giants

October 28th, 2014 at 2:22pm CST by Luke Adams

With less than one hour remaining until the trade deadline for 2014 passes, there’s been little Tuesday action around the league. If the Cardinals don’t make a move though, it won’t be for lack of trying, according to Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic. Somers tweets that the Cards have made “many calls” in search of a pass rusher, but haven’t had any luck so far.

Here’s more from around the NFC:

  • In explaining his philosophy on roster-building to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com, Falcons owner Arthur Blank indicated that he prefers his team to make most of its major moves in the offseason rather than during the season.
  • While the Giants will miss Jon Beason, there shouldn’t be much of a step down at middle linebacker when the team plugs in Jameel McClain, writes Jordan Raanan of NJ.com. As Raanan observes, the Giants signed Beason to a three-year deal in the offseason, but given his frequent battles with injuries, the club could look to get out of the contract this winter.
  • In a separate NJ.com piece, Raanan writes that the Giants don’t seem particularly interested in signing any of their players to in-season extensions. That includes top defenders Jason Pierre-Paul and Antrel Rolle, whose contracts expire at season’s end.
  • According to David Newton of ESPN.com (Twitter links), Panthers coach Ron Rivera said today that placing linebacker Chase Blackburn on injured reserve was a tough move and that he doesn’t think Blackburn will require surgery on his injured knee.

Monday Roundup: Cutler, Trades, Landry

October 27th, 2014 at 8:54pm CST by Rory Parks

Our Zach Links wrote earlier that Bears GM Phil Emery is not currently thinking about parting ways with head coach Marc Trestman, and Emery and Trestman both reaffirmed their support for embattled quarterback Jay Cutler one day after Chicago’s embarrassing Week 8 loss to the Patriots. As Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com writes, Emery and Trestman remain committed to Cutler, attempting to accentuate the positives in their signal caller’s performances while acknowledging the struggles.

Emery claimed that his club’s decision to stick with Cutler has nothing to do with Cutler’s salary, but ESPN’s John Clayton is understandably skeptical. In his “Clayton Minute” video segment, Clayton says that, given the Bear’s $18MM annual commitment to Cutler, Chicago simply has no other choice than to hope that Cutler can right the ship.

  • Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun Times writes that Emery has been approached with “two or three interesting” trade proposals, but nothing that helps the Bears win in 2014. As Emery stated that the team is far from giving up hope on this season.
  • Derek Carr is showing tremendous promise and the Browns have to be second-guessing their decision to target Johnny Manziel in the draft instead of him, writes Jodie Valade of the Plain Dealer.
  • Browns head coach Mike Pettine says that the team’s phones are ringing but cautions that the deadline brings few trades in comparison to the amount of talk that happens, tweets Nate Urlich of the Akron Beacon-Journal.
  • Citing ESPN’s Adam Schefter, CSNBaltimore.com staff reports that the league has levied a $1.4MM salary cap charge on the Ravens as a result of Ray Rice‘s grievance against the club. According to Schefter, it is normal practice for the NFL to make such a move when a grievance is pending. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun writes that the cap charge reduces the Ravens’ cap room to about $4.1MM. Baltimore may need to utilize some of that room, as star cornerback Jimmy Smith is expected to miss “a few weeks” with a left foot sprain, according to Garrett Downing of BaltimoreRavens.com.
  • Titans head coach Ken Whisenhunt said that his club is unlikely to make any more trades,according to Terry McCormick of TitansInsider.com (via Twitter).
  • The Colts are in no hurry to bring back LaRon Landry after his four-game PED suspension, writes Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star.
  • Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com looks at how Jon Beason‘s salary, and the Giants‘ salary cap, will be affected by Beason’s season-ending injury.

 

Zach Links contributed to this post

NFC East Notes: Eagles, Giants, Redskins

October 20th, 2014 at 7:38pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The NFC East looks to be a competitive division, at least near the top, where the Cowboys and Eagles have a combined record of 11-2. Let’s take a look at some injury updates from Philadelphia, New York, and Washington:

  • Making his weekly appearance on CSNPhilly, Eagles guard Evan Mathis said he has been cleared to resume practicing (Twitter link via Adam Caplan of ESPN). Mathis, who sprained his MCL in Week 1, is on injured reserve/designated to return and isn’t eligible to return to game action until Week 10.
  • Mathis also told CSNPhilly that center Jason Kelce, who has been sidelined since Week 3, is “ahead of schedule” in his recovery from a sports hernia, and could play for the Eagles again as soon as Week 9 (Twitter link via Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer).
  • Though Giants linebacker Jon Beason is expected to travel to North Carolina to meet with an ankle specialist, New York has no intention of shutting down the veteran as of yet, according to Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger.
  • Meanwhile, guard Geoff Schwartz is expected to begin practicing next week, but he likely won’t make his regular season debut for the Giants until Week 9, per Raanan.
  • The Redskins will be without linebacker Brian Orakpo for the rest of the season, leading John Keim of ESPN.com to examine how Washington will aim to replace a key cog in its defense. Rookie Trent Murphy will see more snaps, and a team source tells Keim that the Redskins will consider re-signing Rob Jackson, who played for the team until 2013.

Minor Moves: Tuesday

September 16th, 2014 at 4:34pm CST by Luke Adams

We’ve devoted one Tuesday post to the practice squad shuffling being done by teams today, but many clubs around the league are also tweaking their 53-man rosters. We’ll round up a handful of those transactions right here, with new moves added to the top of the list throughout the day:

Earlier updates:

  • In addition to the moves noted below, the Bears have also promoted defensive back Isaiah Frey to their active roster from their practice squad, and cut running back Shaun Draughn, as well as tight end Matthew Mulligan (Twitter link). The series of transactions leaves the club with 52 players on its roster.
  • Former Vikings linebacker and special-teamer Larry Dean has signed with the Bills, the team announced today in a press release. To make room for Dean, Buffalo placed safety Jonathan Meeks on injured reserve with a neck injury.
  • A week after placing tight end Tyler Eifert on IR with the designation to return, the Bengals have placed another tight end on injured reserve, and Alex Smith won’t be eligible to return the season (Twitter link). The team also announced that tight end Kevin Brock has been signed to take Smith’s roster spot.
  • The Bears have promoted practice-squad wideout Rashad Ross to the 53-man roster, cutting receiver and returner Chris Williams to clear room, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter).
  • Linebacker Dan Fox is set to be called up to the Giants‘ active roster from their practice squad, tweets Ebenezer Samuel of the New York Daily News, suggesting that placing Jon Beason on injured reserve may end up being the corresponding move.
  • The Colts announced in a press release that they’ve signed defensive tackle Kelcy Quarles off the Patriots‘ practice squad, waiving running back Dion Lewis to create roster space.

Major Injuries: Week 2

September 14th, 2014 at 10:31pm CST by Rory Parks

Here at Pro Football Rumors, we tend to stay away from injury news and report instead on issues concerning player movement, transactions, etc. However, when there is a major injury to a star player, the potential roster impacts of such an injury are readily apparent. As such, we will update this post with those injuries from Week 2 that could significantly alter a team’s personnel decisions going forward.

  • Chiefs‘ star players Jamaal Charles and Eric Berry were both ruled out of today’s 24-17 loss to the Broncos (via Twitter). Head coach Andy Reid said both players had suffered ankle injuries, reports Field Yates of ESPN (via Twitter). Charles will have an MRI tomorrow to test the seriousness of his injury, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).
  • Earlier, we saw that Bengals‘ receiver A.J. Green went down with a toe injury. Green said after the game that his toe is not broken and that he hopes to play next week, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN (via Twitter). Pro Football Talk reports that a league source believes Green should Dr. Anderson in Charlotte to rule out a Lisfranc injury (via Twitter).
  • Chargers‘ running back Ryan Mathews suffered a sprained MCL in the team’s impressive 30-21 victory over the Seahawks, reports Michael Gehlken of the U-T San Diego. He will undergo further tests to see the extent of the injury.
  • The Rams‘ versatile playmaker Tavon Austin exited today’s 19-17 win over the Buccaneers with a knee injury, reports Nick Wagoner of ESPN (via Twitter). The extend of the injury is unknown, and Austin will have more tests tomorrow.
  • Buccaneers‘ defensive tackle Gerald McCoy was also injured in that game, reportedly breaking his hand, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). It has yet to be determined whether or not McCoy will be able to play through the injury.
  • Bears‘ star cornerback Charles Tillman left the Sunday Night Football game with a triceps injury, reports Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter). Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune notes that it was a right biceps injury just like this one that forced Tillman to miss a huge chunk of the 2013 campaign (via Twitter).
  • Giants‘ cornerback Walter Thurmond suffered what is thought to be a strained pectoral muscle in the team’s 25-14 loss to the Cardinals, reports Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Post (via Twitter). He will receive an MRI tomorrow to confirm.
  • Another key piece to the Giants‘ defense, Jon Beason, suffered a toe injury, according to Vacchiano (via Twitter). Vacchiano notes that the team is worried considering a toe injury on the same foot caused him to miss nearly the entire offseason.

Earlier Updates

  • Dolphins RB Knowshon Moreno has suffered a dislocated elbow and is expected to miss four to eight weeks, tweets Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald.
  • We learned earlier today that Griffin suffered a dislocated ankle and could miss the remainder of the season, depending on the severity of the injury.
  • Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III suffered an injury to his left ankle, and Washington receiver DeSean Jackson injured his shoulder in today’s game against the Jaguars. The team announced (Twitter links) that neither player will return to the game.
  • Meanwhile, Bengals receiver A.J. Green suffered a toe injury in today’s game against the Falcons and will not return, tweets Coley Harvey of ESPN.com.

 

East Notes: Beason, Bills, Easley, Orton

June 13th, 2014 at 2:57pm CST by Luke Adams

With linebackers like Sean Weatherspoon and Sean Lee already suffering season-ending injuries this spring, the Giants may have gotten off the hook relatively lightly on Jon Beason‘s diagnosis. As Kimberly Jones of the NFL Network first reported (via Twitter), Beason suffered a sesamoid fracture in his right foot, as well as a ligament tear, the team confirmed today in a press release. Jones hears that the recovery timetable will be about 12 weeks, which would get Beason back on the field just in time for the Giants’ opener, and the linebacker sounded today like he had a similar thought.

“The prognosis is X amount of time and it (the Sept. 8 opener) is within that timeframe,” Beason said. “I expect to be back (for that game). If not, I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Here are a few more items from out of the NFL’s two East divisions:

  • The family of Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs is proposing to build a stadium to help secure the Bills‘ long-term future in western New York, multiple sources tell John Wawrow of The Associated Press. According to Wawrow, executives of Jacobs’ company are scheduled to meet with at least one prospective ownership group to evaluate potential sites for a new stadium in Erie and Niagara counties.
  • First-round defensive tackle Dominique Easley is one of just 17 draft picks who remains unsigned, and Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (Twitter link) hears that Easley and the Patriots are “squabbling” over injury protection. However, any sort of holdout seems very unlikely.
  • Kyle Orton counts for too much against the cap, considering his role, opines Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News. In Sherrington’s view, that’s why the quarterback doesn’t have much leverage in his ongoing staredown with the Cowboys — the team expects and wants Orton to report to camp, and will push for him to repay some of his bonus money if he decides to retire instead.
  • Sheldon Richardson hopes to see the Jets reward fellow defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson with a lucrative long-term contract soon, telling Brian Costello of the New York Post that Wilkerson is “due for a paycheck.”

Giants Notes: Amukamara, Freeman, Beason

April 22nd, 2014 at 2:17pm CST by Luke Adams

After winning a Super Bowl earlier this year on a Seahawks squad that featured arguably the NFL’s best secondary, Walter Thurmond thinks he may take that title with him to New York, telling reporters today that he feels like the Giants could have the league’s best secondary in 2014 (Twitter link via Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News). As Vacchiano tweets, Thurmond also thinks he’s the best slot corner in the NFL.

While the Giants’ secondary may not reach the heights that Thurmond envisions, the group definitely looks stronger than it did in 2013, with Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie having arrived along with Thurmond in free agency. As the former Seahawk prepares to back up his comments, let’s check in on a few more Giants notes:

  • Cornerback Prince Amukamara is hoping the Giants pick up his fifth-year option for 2015, and admits he might feel a little insulted if the club turns it down, tweets Jordan Raanan of NJ.com. A team source tells Vacchiano (Twitter link) that the Giants remain undecided on the option, and likely won’t announce anything until next week.
  • Josh Freeman‘s new contract with the Giants is a minimum salary benefit deal with a $55K signing bonus and a $10K workout bonus, according to Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter links). Assuming he plays out the season, Freeman will earn $795K, while the cap hit for the team will be $635K.
  • Jon Beason, who represented himself in contract negotiations this offseason, said today that the Giants called him eight minutes before free agency opened in March (Twitter link via Vacchiano).
  • Earlier today, we heard that Will Hill‘s time with the Giants may be over, as the safety faces another drug-related suspension.

Contract Details: Peppers, Cook, McClain

March 17th, 2014 at 2:31pm CST by Luke Adams

While Julius Peppers‘ three-year deal with the Packers was reported as being worth $30MM over three years, the base value is actually just $26MM, though that could increase if the veteran hits certain escalators, says Tom Pelissero of USA Today (Twitter links). With a $7.5MM signing bonus and a $1MM base salary in 2014, the cap hit in the first year will be just $3.5MM. The deal also includes base salaries of $8.5MM in 2015 and $7MM in 2016, with $1MM in workout and roster bonuses in each of those seasons.

Let’s round up a few more contract details from around the league….

  • Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com provides the financial details on the contracts signed by cornerback Chris Cook and kicker Phil Dawson with the 49ers. Cook’s pact is a minimum salary benefit deal with no guaranteed money, according to Maiocco.
  • Jameel McClain‘s two-year deal with the Giants has a base value of $4.5M, with escalators that can push up to $6M, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). Wilson says the contract includes a $600K signing bonus, base salaries of $1.375M (2014) and $1.75M (2015), and a $400K roster bonus in ’15.
  • The Rams‘ new deal with Jo-Lonn Dunbar is a two-year, $2.05MM contract, but could be voided after year one in certain scenarios, as Wilson explains in a pair of tweets.
  • The new five-year contract Zach Strief and the Saints agreed to today includes a first-year base salary of just $900K, meaning Strief’s 2014 cap hit is $2MM, tweets Mike Triplett of ESPN.com.
  • Frank Zombo‘s new contract with the Chiefs is a two-year deal, reports Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter).
  • The three-year deal between the Giants and Jon Beason has a base value of $16.8MM, with a $4.4MM signing bonus and $6MM in overall guaranteed money, tweets Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News.

Giants Sign Jon Beason To Three-Year Deal

March 14th, 2014 at 3:05pm CST by Luke Adams

FRIDAY, 3:05pm: Beason’s deal with the Giants is now official, the team announced today.

THURSDAY, 9:02am: Beason’s new contract with the Giants is for three years and $19MM, including $7MM guaranteed, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.

WEDNESDAY, 12:50pm: The Giants have reached an agreement with free agent linebacker Jon Beason on a contract that will keep him in New York, reports Aditi Kinkhabwala of the NFL Network (Twitter link). The NFL Network’s Kimberly Jones first reported that a deal between the two sides was close (via Twitter).

Beason, 29, was said to be the Giants’ top priority even before free agency began, and the club was finally able to lock him up after he had a chance to test the market. Since he was representing himself, Beason wasn’t able to negotiate with clubs over the weekend, so he likely gauged his own value over the last 24 hours or so before deciding to re-sign in New York. The Broncos were among the teams rumored to have interest in the veteran linebacker.

Pro Football Focus’ metrics ranked Beason 47th out of 55 qualified inside linebackers last season, in large part due to poor grades in pass coverage. However, the ex-Panther piled up 93 tackles and an interception in just 12 games with the Giants.