Sunday Roundup: Smith, Broyles, Johnson
Ravens wide receiver Torrey Smith entered the league out of the University of Maryland with high upside and explosive play-making ability, but he was still very raw. He struggled with drops in training camp prior to his rookie season in 2011, but he was given a chance to start against the Rams in Week 3 of that year when Lee Evans went down with an injury. In the first quarter in St. Louis, Smith recorded the first three receptions of his pro career; they all went for touchdowns.
Since then, even if Smith has not been the team’s No. 1 wideout by name, he has been the receiving threat that has garnered the most attention from opposing defenses. He has quietly become one of the premier deep threats in the game, but, as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk points out, he enters his contract season with very little fanfare. The Ravens would like to extend his contract, but no progress has been made on that front as of yet. Although new offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak does not run a pure West Coast offense–which means that Joe Flacco will still have a chance to take a few deep shots per game to burners like Smith and Jacoby Jones–Smith must become a more reliable short and intermediate route runner in order to thrive and earn a contract on par with some of the better receivers in the league. As Florio notes, Smith has every reason to emerge as one of the better wideouts in the game in 2014, and, given his work ethic and the strides he has made thus far, it would be foolish to bet against him.
Now for some more notes from around the league:
- Speaking of Smith and the Ravens‘ receiving corps, Clifton Brown of CSNBaltimore.com writes that, although the top four receivers are set–Torrey Smith, Steve Smith Sr., Marlon Brown, and Jones–the battle among the remaining wideouts will be an intense one. Seventh-round pick Michael Campanaro could emerge as a reliable slot receiver, the team has been impressed with undrafted find Jeremy Butler, and veterans like Deonte Thompson and LaQuan Williams will also have a shot.
- Joseph Person of The Charlotte Observer writes that, despite losing Smith Sr. and Jordan Gross, the Panthers‘ leadership void can be adequately filled by franchise cornerstones like Cam Newton and Luke Kuechly, who have slowly developed into locker room leaders.
- Free agent offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie is not only looking for a job, but he probably needs one, writes Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. Despite having made tens of millions of dollars in the league, McKinnie has not managed his money wisely and recently had his car repossessed.
- Ryan Broyles, who is attempting to secure a spot as the Lions‘ primary slot receiver, has made good progress in his recovery from a torn Achilles tendon, writes Carlos Monarrez of The Detroit Free Press.
- Josh Katzenstein of The Detroit News takes a crack at the Lions‘ starting lineups for 2014, and he also notes that the competitions at right tackle, strongside linebacker, and kicker will be ones to watch.
- In a column for CBSSports.com, and in the wake of an arbitrator’s ruling in Jimmy Graham‘s grievance case, recently-retired tight end Tony Gonzalez argues that players should be paid based on their production rather than their position.
- The NFL announced the suspensions of Dion Jordan and Rokevious Watkins on Friday, which has left some to wonder why there has not been an official announcement regarding Eagles‘ right tackle Lane Johnson‘s suspension. Tim McManus of PhillyMag.com explains the league’s process when a player tests positive for a banned substance and posits that Johnson is still going through that process.
Monday Roundup: Graham, Taylor, Dolphins
Let’s take a look at some links from around the league on this Monday evening:
- Arbitrator Stephen Burbank will issue his decision on Saints tight end Jimmy Graham‘s franchise tag grievance on Thursday, according to Adam Schefter and Mike Triplett of ESPN.com.
- Steelers‘ cornerback Ike Taylor, who agreed to reduce his 2014 salary from $7MM to $2.5MM in March, and who seemed at peace when speaking with reporters about his decision just a month ago–he simply said “my [new] salary is a lot of money”–has apparently had a change of heart. As Mark Kaboly of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes, Taylor recently appeared on The Jim Rome Show and stated, “Did it hurt me? Hell yeah. Does it still hurt? Yeah, it hurts, but hopefully I can go in and bounce back this year, do what I need to do on the field and we will see what happens after.” Of course, there is nothing Taylor can do about it now, and both he and the Steelers are hoping for a bounce-back year in 2014.
- ESPN’s Adam Caplan tweets a couple of options for the Eagles as they make to shuffle their offensive line in the wake of the Lane Johnson suspension.
- Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com continues his Best Contract/Worst Contract series with the Falcons. He explains why the team’s best contract is with wideout Roddy White, and the worst is with LT Sam Baker.
- Dr. David Chao, whose piece for the National Football Post we referenced earlier today with regards to the dangers associated with playing football on dirt–as they do in the Oakland Coliseum–also passed along a couple of Dolphins injury notes. Chao confirms that running back Knowshon Moreno has had his knee scoped and should return in time for the majority of training camp, but he expects center Mike Pouncey to wind up on the PUP list, requiring him to miss at least the first six weeks of the season.
East Notes: Kiwanuka, Johnson, Redskins, ‘Fins
In his annual exercise naming the most overrated and underrated player on each team, Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com highlighted Mathias Kiwanuka as the Giant who isn’t living up to expectations. The advanced metrics bear that out — the 31-year-old Kiwanuka, who might be living off his first-round pedigree at this point, graded as the third-worst 4-3 defensive end in the NFL last season per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). The Giants apparently also noticed a degradation of eight-year veteran’s skills — they required him to take a pay cut in March.
More from New York and the league’s two East divisions:
- With Jon Beason likely to miss some regular season action with a foot injury, Jameel McClain is poised to take over at middle linebacker for the Giants, writes Dan Graziano of ESPN.com in his latest mailbag. In that scenario, 2011 sixth-rounder Jacquian Williams would become the starter at weakside linebacker.
- For a rookie playing in a complicated offense, Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson didn’t perform all that poorly in 2013. But, as he tells Sheil Kapadia of PhillyMag.com, Johnson wants to show marked improvement next season. “I’m trying to be a dominant player. I know I have the ability,” said the 24-year-old. “It’s just a matter of being consistent with it because there’s times where I showed flashes of being a really good player, and then there’s other times where I didn’t. So I’m just trying to be more consistent this year.”
- In a discussion examining potential 2014 breakout Redskins, Rich Tandler and Tarik El-Bashir of CSNWashington.com spotlighted running back Roy Helu and tight end Niles Paul, deducing that a pass-happy, Jay Gruden-led offense will lead to plenty of offensive production to go around.
- Center Ted Larsen is hoping to break camp with the Dolphins following Mike Pouncey‘s injury, and is just one of several Miami undrafted rookies to watch for in 2014, according to James Walker of ESPN.com.
- The Dolphins have officially begun renovations on Sun Life Stadium, the team announced on Twitter. The refurbishment is expected to include (via Fox Sports Florida) all new seating, concourse and concession upgrades, and new video screens, and will conclude before the 2016 season.
NFC East Notes: Beckham Jr., Bryant, Mathis
After receiving a $5MM cap credit on June 1 for cutting offensive lineman David Baas in March, the Giants have just over $7MM to spend on fine-tuning the roster, writes Jordan Ranaan of NJ.com. 91 players are currently under contract for the G-Men, with a team cap of $124.98MM.
As Ranaan points out, $7MM might sound like a lot of money, but 20 teams have more room to spend. All seven 2014 draftees except for third-round defensive tackle Jay Bromley have signed their rookie deals, and it’s only a matter of time before the former Syracuse Orange joins the fold.
More news and notes from the AFC East below…
- Giants first-round wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is being rested for precautionary reasons while recovering from a hamstring injury that sidelined him at OTAs, reports National Football Post’s Aaron Wilson. Beckham told reporters he’s also suffering from a tight back.
- Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden waxed poetic about his former college and current pro teammate, Dez Bryant, per The Dallas Morning News’ Jon Machota. “He’s unbelievable at what he does,” Weeden said. “It’s the same stuff he did when he was 18 when he came in. I have said it when we came in the same year, he’s just a freak. The guy is probably the most passionate football player. He loves the game more than anyone I’ve ever been around.” Both players arrived at Oklahoma State in 2007.
- At a function honoring former Arkansas head football coach and athletic director Frank Broyles, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said nothing has made him prouder than to know the Arkansas Razorbacks — Jones’ Alma mater — will play at AT&T Stadium next season, tweets Robbie Neiswanger of the Arkansas News Bureau.
- Eagles guard Evan Mathis said the team is light years ahead of where it was compared to this time last year, reports CSNPhilly.com’s Michael Barkann. “This year, you can just see so much more confidence on the field. Everybody’s executing, it’s much more crisp, and that’s what you get with a year under this system.”
- Michael Bamiro has been working mainly at right guard on the Eagles‘ second-team offensive line, writes CSNPhilly.com’s Geoff Mosher.
- According to a tweet by last year’s No. 4 overall pick Lane Johnson, the Eagles‘ rookie dinner totaled nearly $18k, including a $3,495 bottle of wine.
- Eagles first-round pick Marcus Smith, who will be outside linebacker in Philadelphia’s base 3-4, was tabbed by National Football Post’s Greg Gabriel as one of five players to keep an eye on during the 2014 NFL Season.
- Niles Paul, the Redskins wide receiver and core special teams player, is optimistic about a potential turnout for the ST unit under Ben Kotwica, the first-year coordinator, writes CSNWashington.com’s Tarik El-Bashir.
- Training camp practices under new Redskins head coach Jay Gruden will likely start earlier, end later and feature a longer break in between sessions, reports CSNWashington.com’s Rich Tandler.
- Learning his fifth offensive system in five years, Redskins quarterback Colt McCoy likes the fit in Washington and is eager to learn behind Kirk Cousins and Robert Griffin III, writes ESPN.com’s John Keim.
East Notes: Vick, Smith, Jets, Bills, Cowboys
It appears that the much-anticipated battle between Michael Vick and Geno Smith for the Jets starting quarterback job is over before it even started.
“Geno’s the starting quarterback for that football team,” Vick told Dom Cosentino of NJ.com at a family fitness event Saturday.
“Ultimately our goal is to try to help Geno become the best quarterback that he can be. Myself and [third-stringer Matt Simms] are all trying to put him in a position where he can get better from year one or year two.”
Vick, who signed a one-year deal worth $5MM with the Jets in March, was expected to push Smith for the job in training camp.
More notes from the AFC and NFC East divisions…
- Despite a brew of veteran (Vick), potential (Smith) and developmental (Simms) quarterbacks on the roster, the Jets are not ruling out the possibility of adding another signal-caller in the draft, writes Brian Costello of the New York Post.
- Three months could be all that stands in between the Bills and a new owner, the Associated Press’ John Wawrow reports. It’s possible that a sale could come by July, and approval of the sale by October.
- In more Bills ownership talk, Jay Skurski of The Buffalo News says the former owner of the Montreal Canadiens, Colorado businessman George Gillett, is not expected to attempt to purchase the team.
- The Cowboys are unlikely to throw max money at running back DeMarco Murray, ESPNDallas.com’s Todd Archer writes in his Twitter mailbag. Murray’s in the final season of a four-year rookie deal, having entered the league in 2011 as a third-round draft pick from Oklahoma.
- Look for second-year player J.J. Wilcox to be Dallas’ starting safety opposite Barry Church in 2014, says Jon Machota of The Dallas Morning News. Drafted No. 80 overall in 2013, Wilcox totaled 38 tackles in 13 games played as a rookie, but lost his job to undrafted rookie Jeff Heath midway through the season.
- Alex Smith of PhiladelphiaEagles.com previews the team’s offensive line situation, dishing out insight on depth behind the starters and what year No. 2 will be like for 2013 first-round pick Lane Johnson.
- With not much of a track record to go off, Dolphins GM Dennis Hickey has Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel stumped as to how the team’s No. 1 personnel man will work the upcoming draft.