FA Roundup: Veldheer, Ward, Byrd, Jets
The Cardinals are expected to heavily pursue free agent offensive tackle Jared Veldheer, according to Kent Somers of AZCentral.com. The team is looking to improve their offensive line by upgrading at left tackle, where incumbent Bradley Sowell struggled mightily last season. Veldheer, 26, was somewhat surprisingly not franchise-tagged by the Raiders, who have ample cap space and could have aimed to sign him to a long-term contract. Now the Cardinals (whose top target, Branden Albert, will likely sign with the Dolphins) will look to swoop in and sign the young lineman.
Other free agent notes:
- ESPN.com’s Nick Wagoner seconds Somers’ reports, and tweets the the Cardinals have “cooled” on free agent offensive lineman Rodger Saffold.
- Completing the offensive linemen circle, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets the the Raiders may be interested in Saffold.
- Approximately a dozen teams have expressed interest in free agent safety T.J. Ward, according to the National Football Post’s Aaron Wilson.
- The Eagles have yet to show much interest in free agent safety Jairus Byrd, but they could be interested in Mike Mitchell, who would cost much less, writes Geoff Mosher of CSNPhilly.com.
- Safety Donte Whitner and running back Maurice Jones-Drew are two players that are of interest to the Jets, tweets Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News.
NFC Notes: Falcons, Packers, Bears
It was revealed yesterday that potential number-one pick Jadeveon Clowney wants to play for the Falcons. While team general manager Thomas Dimitroff brushed off Clowney’s comments, he did reveal his willingness to wheel and deal. Dimitroff spoke to NFL Network’s Kimberly Jones and discussed the Falcons’ draft plans (via D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution):
“I’ve been very clear about this, we will always be open for business,” Dimitroff said. “We will always be open to move up and back, depends on what’s right for us.”
Based on most mock draft, Clowney won’t be around for the Falcons’ pick. Even then, Dimitroff may instead be looking to move down.
“Again, I feel really comfortable with where we are at six,” he said, “but there are opportunities on both sides of six.”
Here are a couple more notes from around the NFC…
- The Packers should re-sign center Evan Dietrich-Smith, says Mike Vandermause of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Vandermause believes the team should keep Dietrich-Smith and let him compete with J.C. Tretter for the starting gig.
- The Bears have shown interest in bringing back Henry Melton and Jay Ratliff, writes Dan Pompei. The writer also says that he would be surprised if the team had zero interest in bringing back Nate Collins.
- Vernon Davis hinted on Instagram that he’s working on bringing Maurice Jones-Drew to the 49ers, writes Vito Stellino of the Florida Times-Union. Davis posed a picture with the caption: “Me and Maurice Jones Drew discussing the FUTURE a few nights ago. #San Francisco.’’ As Stellino points out, Jones-Drew grew up in California and attended UCLA.
Free Agency Notes: Jones-Drew, Veldheer, Finley
With free agency looming, let’s discuss some of the veteran players that find themselves in uncertain contract situations…
Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com thinks that Maurice Jones-Drew‘s days playing for the Jaguars are over. DiRocco explains that because Jones-Drew will have likely have to take a less lucrative contract to stay in Jacksonville, he will likely leave to pursue a a free agent deal similar to the ones received by Steven Jackson, Reggie Bush, and Shonn Greene last offseason.
- Jermichael Finley has stated that while he hopes to remain with the Packers, he is open to playing for any team next season, as reported by ProFootballTalk.com and Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette
- Jared Veldheer expressed to 95.7 THE GAME radio station that he wants to continue to play for the Raiders and hopes to receive a new deal soon.
- Mile High Report writes (via Twitter) that the Broncos may move right tackle Orlando Franklin over to guard to fill the void left by departing free agent Zane Beadles
AFC Notes: MJD, Harvin, Sanchez, Texans
The Jaguars are allowing Maurice Jones-Drew to hit the open market this offseason and the tailback says he has no problem with that, writes Ryan O’Hallaran of the Florida Times-Union.
“I’m fine with it,” Jones-Drew said. “I kind of figured that because we didn’t talk throughout the year. That’s part of the business. There’s no hard feelings. I gave everything I could to the organization. I appreciate them giving me that opportunity. Wherever I go next year, they’ll have a person ready to play at a high level.”
Here’s more from around the AFC:
- Before Percy Harvin was sent to the Seahawks by the Vikings a year ago, there was some talk of a possible trade to the Patriots, the receiver confirmed to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald. “It flew around for a little bit, but I never really dug into it to see how much interest there was,” Harvin said. “I was working out and waiting for my agent to do all that work.”
- Should the Jets roll on with Mark Sanchez under center or find themselves a new quarterback? Many ex-Jets were asked that question along radio row this week and the consensus seems to be that they should look elsewhere, writes ESPNNewYork.com’s Rich Cimini. Former Jets linebacker Bart Scott thinks the Jets should go make a run at Matt Schaub, who could be cut loose by the Texans.
- Speaking of Schaub, John McClain of the Houston Chronicle continues to report that the Texans intend to take a quarterback with the first overall pick in this year’s draft (Twitter link).
- One of John Elway‘s best moves may have come years after he retired when he traded Tim Tebow and made way for Peyton Manning, writes Nancy Armour of USA Today. It’s safe to say things worked out pretty well for the Broncos as Manning will lead them in Sunday’s Super Bowl while Tebow is out of professional football.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.