Kyle Juszczyk - Pro Football Rumors

Extra Points: Colts, Okung, Panthers, Ngata

March 6th, 2017 at 3:00pm CST by Zachary Links

Restricted free agent defensive tackle Zach Kerr has yet to be tendered an offer by the Colts and an NFL source tells Stephen Holder of the Indy Star that indications are he won’t be tendered at all. Kerr’s playing time vacillated last year but he still finished out with 2.5 sacks. Since joining the Colts as a UDFA in 2014, he has played nose tackle, defensive tackle, and defensive end. In related news, the Colts have decided against tendering an offer to linebacker Josh McNary.

Here’s more from around the NFL:

Panthers players are “actively recruiting” free agent tackle Russell Okung, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Teams themselves cannot officially reach out to free agents until Tuesday.
Haloti Ngata informed the Lions that he plans to play this year, Albert Breer of The MMQB tweets. Ngata stated back in January that he would return in 2017, but Breer says the coaching staff was unsure about his intentions until recently.
If Ravens fullback Kyle Juszczyk reaches free agency on Thursday, he’ll likely sign with a team that provides him a “hybrid” role, meaning that he’d see time at running back, fullback, and tight end, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Juszczyk is our No. 1 rated fullback ticketed for free agency.
The Giants will not tender an offer to restricted free agent Orleans Darkwa, Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com writes. A return is still possible, but the running back will first test the market. Darkwa was recently cleared for action after recovering from a leg injury.
The 49ers don’t plan to tender either of their RFAs, running back DuJuan Harris or cornerback Marcus Cromartie, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee reports.
The Vikings have interest in re-signing punter Jeff Locke, but it looks like he’ll test the market, Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press tweets.

Latest On Ravens’ Top Free Agents

March 5th, 2017 at 5:21pm CST by Sam Robinson

With less than two days until the legal tampering window opens, the Ravens run the risk of losing three key free agents. One appears to be already set to explore avenues elsewhere, with Jeff Zreibec of the Baltimore Sun reporting (on Twitter) the Ricky Wagner ship “appears to have sailed.” The fifth-year lineman is expected to receive top right tackle money and depart Baltimore.

Wagner’s arrow, though, had been pointed out of Maryland for some time now. He’s viewed as a top tackle in a weak market at that position, and the Ravens were reportedly ready to live with Wagner leaving if it meant they could retain Brandon Williams. That now no longer looks certain, either. The team has made several proposals to the fifth-year nose tackle but hasn’t found common ground, per Zreibec (via Twitter).

Assistant GM Eric DeCosta said Williams would be a Ravens priority, but the former Division II standout may be in position to make more on the open market, given Kawann Short being franchise-tagged in Carolina. Zreibec notes the Ravens could meet with Williams’ agent on Monday, but that’s not certain at this juncture.

The third player in question here, Kyle Juszczyk, won’t command the kind of money the aforementioned pair will this week. And the Ravens are expected to meet with the fullback’s agent on Monday, Zreibec tweets. Juszczyk, though, is expected to garner high-end fullback money, per Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, who notes the fifth-year fullback’s price point is expected to “shatter” what the Ravens will pay.

Juszczyk, who rated as Pro Football Focus’ No. 1 fullback last season (largely on the strength of his top-flight pass blocking), has 97 career receptions for 769 yards and five touchdowns. Kansas City’s Anthony Sherman is the highest-paid fullback at $2.1MM per year, so that could be in line to change.

Wagner and Williams profile as two of the league’s top free agents, with Wagner possibly looking at nearly $10MM per year. Both the Vikings and Bears are said to be interested in his services. The Ravens made an attempt to retain him in February, but Wagner “rebuffed” the offer. Baltimore hovers on the low end in terms of cap space, sitting with barely $13MM.

Top 2017 NFL Free Agents By Position: Offense

February 23rd, 2017 at 9:57pm CST by Zachary Links

[UPDATE: CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST EDITION OF THE TOP 2017 NFL FREE AGENTS BY POSITION]

NFL free agency will get underway on Thursday, March 9th, and while the list of free agents will change between now and then, we do have some idea of who will be available when free agency kicks off. The frenzy is right around the corner and it’s time for us to break down the outlook for each position. We’ll start today on offense, before getting to defense and special teams later this week.

Listed below are our rankings for the top 15 free agents at each offensive position. The rankings aren’t necessarily determined by the value of the contracts that each player is expected to land in free agency, they are simply the players we like the most at each position, with both short- and long-term value taken into account. Restricted and exclusive-rights free agents are not listed here since they are unlikely to actually reach the open market.

We’ll almost certainly be higher or lower on some guys than you are, so we encourage you to make your voice heard in our comments section to let us know which free agents we’ve got wrong.

Here’s our breakdown of the current top 15 free agents by offensive position for 2017:

Quarterback:

Honorable mention: Shaun Hill

As of this writing, Kirk Cousins is far and away the best potential free agent quarterback in this year’s crop. By the time March gets here, we’re fully expecting Cousins to be spoken for. Ultimately, the Redskins could franchise tag him, work out a long-term deal with him, or swing some type of trade that nets them a massive haul of talent and picks. That will leave a crop of retread quarterbacks that would probably best serve as transitional options for QB-needy teams.

Mike Glennon hasn’t done much in his 18 career starts, but talent evaluators are still in love with his size and potential. The 6’7″ quarterback will get more money this spring than you might expect, particularly since there are no surefire QBs in this year’s draft.

Teams looking for stopgap QBs will find a plethora of experienced, though perhaps uninspiring, signal callers. Nick Foles, Brian Hoyer, and Ryan Fitzpatrick all have their best football behind them, but they could hold down the fort for a team in 2017 and maybe even find some success if the defense is strong enough. Of course, the ideal role for those guys would probably be as a backup to a better, younger quarterback.

Running back:

Consider Le’Veon Bell‘s name written in Etch-A-Sketch, because he is very unlikely to get near the open market. That could leave Eddie Lacy as the best tailback available in March. Lacy has struggled with weight issues in recent years and he lost much of the 2016 season to injury. Still, he is a bruising back that could nicely complement a quicker ball carrier. Before he was shut down for the year, Lacy was averaging 5.07 yards per carry in five games for Green Bay.

In the last two years, LeGarrette Blount seems to have put his off-the-field troubles behind him. Whether that’s a sign of his maturity or a product of the Patriots’ culture remains to be seen. Teams can ignore his past indiscretions, but they will be wary of his age. Blount turns 31 in December.

Latavius Murray has shown glimpses of being a special running back, but he has been inconsistent and his 4.0 yards-per-carry average of the last two years isn’t overly impressive. Darren McFadden ran for more than 1,000 yards in 2015, but 2016 was pretty much a lost year for him. Jacquizz Rodgers seemed to break out last year, but he wound up succumbing to the same injury bug that took down a host of other Buccaneers running backs. Speaking of injuries, Rashad Jennings was initially brought to the Giants to be a workhorse back, but two of his three years in New York were marred by ailments. Everyone in this tier has the potential to make a difference, but none should be counted on as anyone’s main guy in 2017.

Fullback:

Kyle Juszczyk graded out as the best fullback in the NFL last year, according to Pro Football Focus. The Ravens would be wise to keep him, but if they don’t, he’ll draw interest from teams all over the league. Juszczyk earned his first career Pro Bowl nod as he caught 37 passes for 266 yards. His exceptional 92.1 pass blocking score from PFF led all other fullbacks by a wide margin.

Mike Tolbert is ranked lower than you might expect due to his age and diminished blocking skills. He’ll turn 32 in November and it’s not a given that he’ll find another NFL home after getting released by the Panthers.

Wide receiver:

Alshon Jeffery has had two down years (by his standards) but he is still the cream of the wide receiver crop. His weak production and PED suspension in 2016 probably killed his chances of getting Dez Bryant-money, but he could still get a multi-year deal with a nice amount of guaranteed cash given the dearth of WR1 types available. Jeffery hasn’t set the world on fire lately, but plenty of GMs will chalk that up to the Bears’ quarterback situation.

Few saw Terrelle Pryor‘s standout season coming. The former Buckeyes quarterback now stands as one of the best pending free agent receivers out there. We would be surprised if the Browns allow him to reach the open market, but if he does get there, he’ll get money thrown at him by teams looking for a No. 2 wide receiver.

The Dolphins can replace Kenny Stills in-house and they need to save their dollars for Jarvis Landry‘s next deal, so we envision Stills testing the open waters. Despite his age, Pierre Garcon could reportedly garner $9MM+ per year on his next pact. Because of his maddening inconsistency, we have slotted Garcon one spot ahead of teammate DeSean Jackson. There’s also this: Jackson can break a game wide open with his blazing speed, but speed doesn’t usually age well. Jackson, who reportedly wants to return to the Eagles, turns 31 in December.

Each player ranked No. 6 through No. 9 here offers potential and question marks in equal measure. Those around Kenny Britt have been questioning his work ethic and attitude since his Rutgers days, but his talent is undeniable. Markus Wheaton appeared destined for big things as the Steelers No. 2 wide receiver last year before an early season shoulder injury landed him on IR. Cordarrelle Patterson has all the physical tools to succeed and he put himself on the map last year as a kick returner. Will some team out there sign him to a multi-year pact and try to mold him into a receiver? Michael Floyd‘s rocky year ended with a Super Bowl ring, though he was not on the active roster in Houston. Floyd will be looking for a one-year, prove-it deal and there will be teams curious to see if he can reprise his 2013 season.

Tight end:

Martellus Bennett sounds like a man who is eager to cash in on the open market. There’s a “real possibility” he winds up elsewhere, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, and he’ll get a monster deal if that happens. Filling in for Rob Gronkowski, Bennett caught 55 passes for 701 yards and seven touchdowns in 2016.

In his first season with the Packers, Jared Cook appeared in ten regular season games and caught 30 of 51 targets for 377 yards and a touchdown. In the Packers’ two-game playoff run, he really turned it on with a total of 13 receptions for 181 yards and two scores. Cook will be a priority for the Packers to re-sign, but it’s not clear if they’ll get a deal done between now and March 9.

Anthony Fasano finds himself ranked higher than some bigger names due to his blocking ability. PFF gave Fasano an 88.1 score for run blocking, which was the best of any tight end last year. His 72.9 pass blocking score was fourth-best among TEs.

Offensive tackle:

Andrew Whitworth spent some time at guard last season but his best (and most profitable) position is on the outside. He’s 35, but he is our top-ranked free agent tackle after turning in another stellar year.

Ricky Wagner could reportedly fetch around $10MM/year. The former fifth-round pick put it all together this year in Baltimore and he won’t turn 28 until October.

Russell Okung was thrust into the free agent market in February when the Broncos declined his option. This time around, it will be interesting to see whether he hires an agent. His previous deal was effectively a one-year pact with a club option for a four-year, $48MM deal with $20.5MM in guaranteed cash. After a so-so year, the Broncos wisely turned it down.

Austin Pasztor is listed as a tackle here, though it’s quite possible he reverts to the interior line in 2017. Mike Adams, a former second-round pick, makes the cut for his natural talent, even though he hasn’t shown much at the professional level. Will Beatty also found his way to the Top 15, but his market will be capped after two injury-ridden years.

Interior offensive line (guard/center):

Kevin Zeitler is the only offensive lineman to crack our Top 10 Free Agents list from late January. Zeitler, 27 in March, was PFF’s No. 7 ranked guard in the NFL this year. After three consecutive strong seasons, he is going to get big bucks.

Ronald Leary, who once pushed for the Cowboys to trade him, recognizes that a return probably isn’t in the cards. The Cowboys will go with La’el Collins in 2017 and beyond, but don’t cry for Leary. After making 12 starts in Collins’ place and ranking No. 25 among Pro Football Focus’ 76 qualified guards, Leary will find an eager market in March.

J.C. Tretter graded out as a top 10 center last year, according to PFF, and he just turned 26. Stefen Wisniewski offers experience at both guard and center and there should be at least a few teams looking at him as a potential starter.

Dallas Robinson contributed to this post.

North Notes: Bengals, Smith, Ravens, Vikes

February 20th, 2017 at 7:45pm CST by Dallas Robinson

With Cincinnati’s offensive line facing offseason uncertainty, a reunion with former Bengal/current Viking right tackle Andre Smith could make sense for both parties, as Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer opines (Twitter links). Smith, whom the Bengals made the sixth overall pick in 2009, played seven seasons in the Queen City before inking a one-year deal with Minnesota last year. If he did rejoin Cincinnati, Smith would slot back in at right tackle, where 2015 first-round pick Cedric Ogbuehi recently struggled. One problem with such a scenario, per Dehner, would be forcing 2015 second-round pick Jake Fisher — who played well at right tackle last year — to guard, a position he hasn’t played much of in the NFL.

Here’s more from the NFL’s two North divisions:

Although Kyle Juszczyk would view a return to the Ravens as “phenomenal,” the veteran fullback would consider other any offers that might be proposed this spring, he tells SiriusXM NFL Radio (Twitter link). The 25-year-old Juszczyk led all NFL fullbacks in both offensive snaps (465) and receptions (37) in 2016, although the lack of fullback usage in the league figures to drive down his market. In terms of positional spending, the Chiefs’ Anthony Sherman currently leads all fullbacks with a $2.1MM annual salary. Juszczyk, a former fourth-round pick out of Harvard, will join a free agent fullback class that includes Patrick DiMarco (Falcons), Marcel Reece (Seahawks), and Jerome Felton (Bills).
Former Vikings quarterbacks coach Scott Turner has joined the University of Michigan as an offensive analyst, tweets Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com. Turner’s father, Norv, resigned as Minnesota’s offensive coordinator midway through last season, and while Scott was retained to finish out the campaign, he was fired by the Vikings last month. Although Turner had coached in the NFL since 2011, he didn’t have many options around the league if he wanted to continue leading quarterback rooms — the only QB coaching job still available is in Kansas City, per Dan Hatman of The Scouting Academy (Twitter link).
Cornerback Bene Benwikere‘s one-year deal with the Bengals is worth $690K, the minimum for a player with three years experience, according to Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Still only 25 years old, Benwikere took visits with four other clubs (including the Jets) before signing with Cincinnati. He’ll compete for a spot in the Bengals’ secondary that includes Adam Jones, Darqueze Dennard, William Jackson III, Josh Shaw, and pending free agent Dre Kirkpatrick.

Minor Notes: Tomsula, Rivera, Ravens

February 8th, 2015 at 8:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

New 49ers head coach Jim Tomsula will bring Adam Henry back to the Bay Area after he mentored two of the NFL’s most explosive rookies while at LSU the past three seasons, reports Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area. Henry will coach the 49ers’ wide receivers alongside Ronald Curry after coaching Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry in 2012 and 2013 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Beckham earned offensive rookie of the year honors last season, and Landry came on strong late last season in Miami. Prior to re-entering the college ranks — Henry coached at Division I-FCS McNeese State for 10 years — Henry worked as a Raiders assistant from 2007-11, the last three as the tight ends coach. Curry, who the 49ers recently denied permission to follow former offensive coordinator Greg Roman to the Buffalo Bills, served as an offensive assistant the past two years under Jim Harbaugh. A former Raiders wide receiver, Curry’s final two years as an active player overlapped with Henry’s initial two seasons on the Raiders’ staff.

In other NFC coaching news…

The Panthers made a legacy choice as their latest assistant-coaching hire, bringing in Cam Turner as assistant wide receivers coach, the Charlotte Observer’s Joseph Person notes. The nephew of Norv Turner, Cam Turner spent the past two seasons coaching at Florida International under his father, Ron Turner. Cam Turner will assist Ricky Proehl on Ron Rivera‘s staff.
The Ravens have formed an extensive pipeline into the small-school ranks and may continue to do so, writes Bo Smolka of CSN Baltimore. In addition to selecting Super Bowl XLVII MVP Joe Flacco out of Division I-FCS Delaware in 2008, the Ravens drafted four small-school prospects in the 2013 draft — including defensive tackle Brandon Williams (Division II Missouri Southern, Round 3) and fullback Kyle Juszczyk (Harvard, Round 4). Last year, they nabbed backup running back Lorenzo Taliaferro in the fourth round from Delaware. Both Williams and Juszczyk played extensively in 2014.
“We’ve tried to find value by more closely looking at small-school players,” assistant general manager Eric DeCosta said to Smolka.

AFC Notes: Ravens, Browns, Patriots, Chiefs

July 6th, 2014 at 6:08pm CST by Peter Sowards

A frustrating year befell the 2013 Baltimore Ravens, unable to match the high expectations set after winning the Super Bowl the prior season. The offense sputtered behind the NFL’s worst rushing offense and inconsistent play from quarterback Joe Flacco, and an average defense couldn’t make up for the offensive deficiencies.

Thankfully, 2014 is a clean slate. According to Ben Smolka of CSNBaltimore.com, safety Darian Stewart, fullback Kyle Juszczyk and offensive lineman Ryan Jensen are three players whose stocks are rising after the team’s offseason, while defensive lineman Terrence Cody, center Gino Gradkowski and offensive lineman Jah Reid are on the opposite end of the spectrum.

Stewart, with 19 starts in his four-year NFL career, looks to be the Week 1 starter opposite Matt Elam, Smolka writes. Juszczyk is a perfect fit in Gary Kubiak‘s offense and Jensen can play every position on the offensive line.

More news and notes from around the NFL…

As the fallout from the Josh Gordon saga continues, Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer suggests the Browns offer the wideout an ultimatum: enroll in a full-time rehabilitation program in Cleveland right now, or be released. Pluto points out that Gordon’s problems have continued from his time at Baylor and Utah, and it’s time to truly figure out his interest in football.
Patriots first-round defensive tackle Dominique Easley is making progress in his recovery coming off two torn ACLs in college, writes ESPNBoston.com’s Mike Reiss, who provides a status update on each of the team’s nine draft picks. Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo, drafted in the second round, has taken advantage of an opportunity afforded to him by the limited availability of backup quarterback Ryan Mallett.
Chiefs rookie running back De’Anthony Thomas told NFL.com that he’s a player nobody’s ever seen step on the football field, according to Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper. Thomas also set a number of goals for the season, including winning Rookie of the Year, leading the team in a number of offensive categories and going to the Super Bowl.