HEADLINES

Josh Allen (DE)

Chiefs Pursuing Edge Rusher, Monitoring Jaguars DE Josh Allen

November 1st, 2022 at 11:24am CST by Sam Robinson

Again nearing a midseason point as of the NFL’s best teams, the Chiefs have already made a pre-deadline move by acquiring Kadarius Toney. But pass rusher appears to be the AFC West frontrunners’ premier goal.

Kansas City has inquired on Jacksonville defensive end Josh Allen, according to SI.com’s Albert Breer. Teams are believed to be monitoring the fourth-year defensive end ahead of the deadline, though nothing has indicated the Jaguars are holding a bidding war despite their 2-6 record.

Bradley Chubb is also on the Chiefs’ radar, according to Outkick.com’s Armando Salguero. Given Chubb’s Broncos employment, that would be an unrealistic pursuit. The Chiefs, who have Frank Clark on a year-to-year arrangement at this point, could pursue Chubb if he hits free agency in 2023. But the Broncos (or another team that acquires Chubb on Tuesday) would have the franchise tag available.

As for Allen, he is now playing in a third defensive scheme in three years. The Dave Caldwell-era draftee has three sacks and 12 QB hits through eight games this season. A former No. 7 overall pick and rookie-year Pro Bowler, Allen is under contract for two more seasons. The Jags picked up his fifth-year option in May.

No substantive extension talks are believed to have taken place between Allen and the Jaguars just yet, but while the Broncos have discussed Chubb with several teams, the Jags might not be there with Allen. The 25-year-old defender could profile as a long-term Jags piece, with a big-ticket extension pairing with Travon Walker‘s rookie contract.

With the Jags two regimes removed from the one that drafted Allen, he is worth monitoring as a stealth trade candidate ahead of today’s 3pm CT deadline. Chubb is the likelier player to move, and the Panthers have all but shut down trade inquiries for Brian Burns.

The Chiefs will return from their Week 8 bye with Clark suspended. Gun charges led to a two-game Clark ban, and the former tag-and-trade acquisition has been inconsistent in Kansas City. The Chiefs have already allocated 2022 resources to augmenting their pass rush, however, drafting George Karlaftis in Round 1 and signing Carlos Dunlap. In seven starts, Karlaftis has registered just a half-sack and one QB hit. Dunlap has two QB drops but is in his age-33 season.

Chiefs, Rams Expected To Pursue Pass Rushing Help

October 30th, 2022 at 7:58am CST by Rory Parks

The Chiefs and Rams are involved in the Brandin Cooks market, and both clubs are also seeking upgrades to their pass rushing contingent. Per Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, Kansas City and Los Angeles would like to add a pass rusher prior to Tuesday’s trade deadline.

The most notable pass rusher that has the best chance of being moved within the next several days appears to be Denver’s Bradley Chubb. Indeed, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com classifies the 2-5 Broncos as the most likely team to make a trade, and he further reports that one club has offered Denver a package headlined by a first-round pick in exchange for Chubb. Even though two of Chubb’s first four professional seasons were marred by injury, his fifth season has proven that, when healthy, he is one of the game’s better edge defenders. Through seven games in 2022, he has posted 5.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.

As Jones points out, Denver would almost certainly not trade Chubb to the division-rival Chiefs, though the Rams would be a viable trade partner. LA, however, lacks a 2023 first-round pick due to last year’s Matthew Stafford trade, so it remains to be seen if it would be able to present Broncos GM George Paton with a winning offer. Jones says the Rams, as is their custom, are willing to trade future first-rounders.

Since Chubb is in the final year of his rookie contract, any acquiring club would want to work out a contract extension with him, according to Schefter. Of course, if Paton holds onto Chubb, he would want to come to terms on a multi-year pact as well (as Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post writes, Chubb is amenable to a contract that keeps him in the Mile High City for the long haul). Regardless of where he ends up, Chubb’s next deal is expected to pay him more than $20MM on an annual basis.

Other pass rushers that could be available for the Chiefs and Rams include players like the Panthers’ Brian Burns and the Jaguars’ Josh Allen. Jones echoes recent reports that Carolina seems unwilling to move Burns, and the NFL.com trio of Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero, and Mike Garafolo report that Jacksonville wants to retain Allen, whom it views as a foundational piece.

While Chubb could be dealt, Schefter says the Broncos do not plan to trade wideouts Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler. Tight end Albert Okwuegbunam, meanwhile, is still likely to be traded, per Troy Renck of Denver 7 (via Twitter). The asking price on Okwuegbunam is “minimal.”

Teams Eyeing Jaguars’ Josh Allen In Trades

October 27th, 2022 at 11:33am CST by Sam Robinson

The Broncos are not the only team in London navigating trade rumors. At 2-5, the Jaguars are in that boat. And their top pass rusher is generating interest.

Teams are eyeing Josh Allen as a trade piece, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. It is uncertain if the Jaguars are willing to move on from Allen, but the team is now two regimes removed from the edge rusher’s arrival.

Since going seventh overall in 2019, Allen has become one of the league’s better pass rushers. The Kentucky alum has not matched his rookie-year sack production (10.5); that season produced his only Pro Bowl nod. But Allen has been Jacksonville’s top edge presence during this span. Allen is off to a hot start this season, tallying 11 quarterback hits to go with three sacks and two forced fumbles. Pro Football Focus slots him just inside the top 15 among edge defenders.

Although the Jaguars picked up Allen’s fifth-year option ($10.89MM), no known extension talks have taken place. Then again, teams commonly exercise the option and wait until ex-first-rounders’ contract years before entering serious negotiations. Allen, 25, being signed through 2023 gives Jacksonville some options as it attempts another rebuild.

The Jags drafted Allen during Tom Coughlin‘s stint alongside Dave Caldwell. They moved on from Coughlin later in 2019 and canned Caldwell a year later, pivoting to Urban Meyer. Doug Pederson and Trent Baalke, who worked with Meyer but operated beneath the brief Jags czar in terms of personnel power, are now running the show. That duo chose Georgia edge Travon Walker No. 1 overall.

With 2020 first-round pick K’Lavon Chaisson not catching on as a reliable starter, however, Allen is a bit more valuable. Unloading him would create a clear need at a premium position, so it would likely take a splashy return to convince the Jags to move on. An Allen extension would pair well with Walker’s rookie contract. The Jags have Walker signed through 2025, and they could play his rookie deal similarly to Allen’s, waiting until Year 5 for extension talks — if Walker turns out to be a player the franchise wants to extend.

The Jags’ London opponent is navigating a similar situation, with former Broncos first-round pick Jerry Jeudy drawing interest despite being under contract beyond this season. This matchup of 2-5 teams might not carry too much weight for AFC playoff standing, but it may end up having a major impact on this year’s trade deadline.

Jaguars Pick Up Josh Allen’s Fifth-Year Option

April 28th, 2022 at 1:56pm CST by Adam La Rose

While there is another, more well-known NFL player with the same name, defensive end Josh Allen has established himself as worthy of a raise going into 2023 in Jacksonville’s eyes. The Jaguars announced on Thursday that they have exercised his fifth-year option. 

Allen, 24, went seventh overall to Jacksonville in 2019, making him the third edge rusher off the board. He had an immediate impact as a rookie, posting 44 tackles and 10.5 sacks. That sent him to the Pro Bowl, and earned him consideration for Defensive Rookie of the Year, an honor which ultimately went to second overall pick Nick Bosa.

His 2020 season was hampered by a knee injury, but Allen responded well this past year. In 16 games, he totalled a career-high 71 tackles, along with 7.5 sacks, one forced fumble and an interception. His level of play certainly hasn’t stopped edge rusher from becoming the expected position of tonight’s first overall pick from Jacksonville, but it has provided a foundation for what the team hopes will be a defensive turnaround beginning in 2022.

As a result of today’s news, Allen will earn just over $16MM in 2023. As is the case with most (if not all) players whose options have been picked up in recent days, however, the possibility exists for a long-term extension to be worked out in the not-too-distant future.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/30/21

August 30th, 2021 at 4:52pm CST by Sam Robinson

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here. Teams have until 3pm CT Tuesday to pare their rosters down to 53 players.

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

  • Released from IR via injury settlement: LB Darron Lee

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Jaguars’ Josh Allen Suffers Knee injury

November 23rd, 2020 at 1:20pm CST by Zachary Links

Jaguars coach Doug Marrone says Josh Allen‘s knee injury will keep him out of action for a while (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Michael DiRocco). Allen avoided ligament damage, but he may be placed on injured reserve later this week. 

Allen went down in the third quarter against the Steelers and had to be escorted over to the medical tent. Now that the Jaguars are 1-9, they might not be in much of a rush to get Allen back on the field. If Allen doesn’t return this year, his season will end with 13 stops and 2.5 sacks across eight games. Those numbers don’t necessarily jump off of the page, but the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus frame Allen as a top-30 edge rusher in the NFL.

Meanwhile, guard Andrew Norwell is considered week-to-week with an arm injury (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). He’s a no-go for this week’s game against the Browns, who will be without star edge rusher Myles Garrett.

The Jaguars haven’t won since their season opener, putting them just behind the Jets in the race to the bottom.

Giants Tried To Trade Up For DE Josh Allen

September 22nd, 2019 at 11:34am CST by Rory Parks

Giants GM Dave Gettleman‘s oft-scrutinized decision to select Duke QB Daniel Jones with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 draft is about to be put to the test, as Jones will make his first career start when Big Blue takes on the Buccaneers this afternoon. Although Jones’ performance in camp and the preseason helped to quiet the criticism a bit, it’s probably not an overstatement to say that Gettleman’s career with the Giants is riding on Jones’ right arm.

Many pundits expected the Giants to select Kentucky edge rusher Josh Allen with the No. 6 pick, and when Gettleman went with Jones, the Jaguars scooped Allen up one pick later. Several days after the draft, Gettleman described the decision to bypass Allen as “agonizing.” He said, “I agonized over that. I agonized. Before the draft, we discussed that thoroughly as a group — first last Friday, then again Wednesday. Obviously we had great regard for Josh Allen. But the one thing I have learned is you don’t fool around with a quarterback. If he’s your guy, you take him.”

In fact, Gettleman was so enamored with Allen that he tried to trade back up with the Jaguars to get him, as Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reports (video link). The Giants were also armed with the No. 17 overall pick, so they may have had enough ammo to pull off such a deal, but Jacksonville wasn’t interested in passing up a talent like Allen.

Gettleman indicated post-draft that he knew of at least two teams that would have taken Jones before New York was back on the clock with the No. 17 selection, and Rapoport confirms that was the case (Twitter link). We heard earlier that the Giants also tried to trade up with Denver for the No. 10 overall selection, but they ultimately held onto the No. 17 pick and drafted DT Dexter Lawrence. Gettleman finally achieved a trade-up when he dealt pick nos. 37, 132, and 142 to Seattle in exchange for the No. 30 pick, which he used to draft CB Deandre Baker.

If Jones becomes a franchise signal-caller, this will all become little more than an interesting footnote. Allen, though, is living up to the hype thus far, having posted two sacks and seven pressures in the first two games of his career.

AFC South Notes: Jaguars, Colts, Luck, Allen

August 1st, 2019 at 9:03pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Jaguars rookie linebacker Quincy Williams is expected to miss four-to-six weeks after suffering a slight tear in his meniscus, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Williams, a third-round pick in the 2019 draft, will need to undergo surgery, but given his recovery timeline, he shouldn’t be expected to miss more than a few regular season games. Per Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com, Williams was the “leading candidate” to take over for the retired Telvin Smith as Jacksonville’s weakside linebacker. Williams, the older brother of third overall pick Quinnen Williams, will now likely be replaced by either D.J. Alexander or Ramik Wilson.

Here’s more from the AFC South:

  • Andrew Luck‘s calf strain is still affecting his ability to practice. The Colts quarterback didn’t participate in practice sessions at all this week and will be re-evaluated on Saturday, per Mike Chappell of CBS 4 Indy, who notes Luck has appeared hesitant while throwing. “Just opening up a little bit,’’ Luck said. “It’s like, ‘I feel like something is going to yank, something is going to pull trying to change direction aggressively.’ That is something that you need to do to play football, you know? And I am not there yet.’’ Luck doesn’t believe his calf injury could lead to an Achilles issue.
  • Only one NFL rookie received a contract with no offset language in 2019: Jaguars first-round edge rusher Josh Allen, reports Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Without offset language, Jacksonville won’t receive a cap credit if Allen is cut midway through his rookie contract and signs elsewhere. If such language were included, the Jaguars would be off the hook for whatever salary Allen was able to earn on the open market.
  • In case you missed it, the Texans gave veteran cornerback Johnathan Joseph a raise.

Jaguars Sign Josh Allen

May 23rd, 2019 at 2:20pm CST by Zachary Links

The Jaguars have officially signed first-round pick Josh Allen. With the outside linebacker in the fold, the Jaguars now have all but one player in their 2019 draft class wrapped up. 

“It feels good to focus on football now, and just worry about football – and not worry about anything off the field,” the No. 7 overall pick said. “I know everything’s settled in now. I’m ready for my family to get down here, and be a Jacksonville Jaguar for life. I’m just ready to make a name for myself in the National Football League. It’s official. I’m officially a Jaguar. It feels great.”

The Kentucky product was widely projected to be off the board before Jacksonville took the podium, but the Jags got a couple of lucky breaks, including the Giants’ surprising decision to take Duke quarterback Daniel Jones at No. 6 overall.

Allen joins right tackle Jawaan Taylor (Round 2, No. 35 overall), tight end Josh Oliver (Round 3, No. 69), running back Ryquell Armstead (Round 5, No. 140), quarterback Gardner Minshew (Round 6, No. 178), and defensive tackle Dontavius Russell (Round 7, No. 235) as the Jags’ draft picks under contract. Third-round linebacker Quincy Williams stands as the last remaining straggler.

Dave Gettleman On Josh Allen, Daniel Jones, Eli Manning

April 29th, 2019 at 8:05pm CST by Sam Robinson

Roger Goodell uttering the name “Daniel Jones” served as perhaps the most shocking moment of the draft, and the decision that led to the commissioner reading that card did not come easy for the Giants.

Dave Gettleman had another name in mind, in the event the Giants felt their short-term need at defensive end was too great to ignore at No. 6. The second-year Giants GM said (via NBC Sports’ Peter King) the decision to bypass Josh Allen for Jones was “agonizing.”

“I agonized over that,” Gettleman said. “I agonized. Before the draft, we discussed that thoroughly as a group — first last Friday, then again Wednesday. Obviously we had great regard for Josh Allen. But the one thing I have learned is you don’t fool around with a quarterback. If he’s your guy, you take him.”

Gettleman said post-draft he knew of two teams that would have taken Jones before the Giants’ No. 17 pick. The Jaguars snapped up Allen at No. 7, doing so despite not expecting the Kentucky edge rusher to be there. Jacksonville was expecting to make a decision between T.J. Hockenson and Jonah Williams, with Albert Breer of SI.com noting Hockenson was the Jags’ likely pick had the Giants gone with Allen as many expected. After the Jags’ Allen pivot, the Lions took Hockenson at No. 8.

The Giants have possessed three top-six picks since 2004, the first of those leading to Eli Manning and the second producing Saquon Barkley. Gettleman did not indicate last year he had any kind of debate between choosing Barkley or Sam Darnold. A year later, the Giants GM said his team might not have another near-future chance to grab a top quarterback prospect without sacrificing plenty in a trade, helping lead the Giants to Jones this year.

“There are no guarantees. So the bottom line is, if you believe this kid can get you to the promised land, why wait?” Gettleman said, via Breer. “You have to have confidence in what you’re doing. You’re drafting players. The team will be better. Now, what happens next year? What if you don’t take him this year, and next year you’re picking 22? You’re going to have to move heaven and earth. This is the closest we’re going to get. It made the most sense.”

The Giants did not leave Manning in the dark about the Jones decision. He called the Giants’ 16th-year quarterback while on the clock at No. 6. Gettleman said Manning could potentially be Big Blue’s starter for multiple additional seasons.

“I was on the phone with Eli. I told him, ‘You’re our quarterback, let’s go,'” Gettleman said, via Breer. “And by the way, we’re drafting the Jones kid, and your job is to be the best quarterback you can be and help us win. It’s his responsibility to crawl up your fanny and learn.”

New York attempted to trade up to land Denver’s pick at No. 10, but the Broncos went with the Steelers’ proposal instead, King reports. It’s possible the Giants wanted to trade up to land Rashan Gary or Brian Burns, whom the Packers and Panthers respectively selected. The Giants selected defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence at No. 17.

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