Ron Wolf

Bills DE Joey Bosa To Miss Time

Bills defensive end Joey Bosa is expected to miss time with a hamstring injury, according to NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe.

Bosa went down in Buffalo’s Week 13 victory over the Steelers. The team hopes he only misses a game or two, but an extended absence is possible. It seems likely that Bosa will miss the Bills’ next game against the Bengals after he was a non-participant in Wednesday’s practice. He is also dealing with a wrist injury, per the team’s official injury report.

Bosa’s absence could be a significant loss for the Bills. He leads the team with five sacks – no other player has more than three – and eight tackles for loss. Those numbers represent somewhat of a resurgence for Bosa after he only managed five sacks and five tackles for loss in 14 games last season. Bosa’s bounce-back campaign is also reflected in his stats and grades from Pro Football Focus (subscription required). His 41 pressures, 16.0% pass rush win rate and 90.1 pass rushing grade all lead the Bills; the last number ranks fifth among all NFL edge rushers.

Rookie defensive tackle T.J. Sanders will likely see more time at defensive end in Bosa’s absence, though he has been part of that rotation for the last several weeks. The second-round pick did not typically line up off the edge in college, but his athleticism makes it feasible in Buffalo’s 4-3 defensive scheme. In fact, two of Sanders’ last three games have featured his best PFF grades of the year. In those matchups, he lined up just once as a defensive tackle with 37 snaps at defensive end.

2024 fifth-rounder Javon Solomon, who has primarily featured on special teams this year, should also see an uptick in defense playing time. Buffalo may also consider calling up one of their three practice squad defensive ends – Morgan Fox, Andre Jones, and Shaq Lawson, but none have seen any in-game action this year. One could replace Bosa on the game day roster, but Sanders and Solomon will likely take on the lion’s share of the available snaps.

The Bills’ optimism about Bosa’s return timeline indicates that he is not a candidate to be placed on injured reserve, which would mandate a four-week absence not only from games, but also from practices.

Contract Details: Dennard, 49ers, Fins, Jets

Here are the latest contract details from around the league:

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/14/18

Here are today’s restricted free agent and exclusive-rights free agent tender decisions, with the list being updated throughout the day. All links go to Twitter unless otherwise noted:

RFAs

Tendered at the second-round level ($2.914MM):

Tendered at original round level ($1.907MM):

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

Sashi Brown Attempted To Help Browns Find Football Exec?

The Browns were officially without a top decision-maker for less than 12 hours, firing Sashi Brown and hiring John Dorsey on Thursday. That process, though, unfolded for the past several weeks.

And Brown himself might have been part of it. The Browns enlisted the help of Hall of Famers Bill Parcells and Ron Wolf to help land a football executive, Michael Lombardi of The Ringer reports (on Twitter). The former Browns GM added Brown was involved in this process. Lombardi, however, points out Brown thought he would join the new football-based exec instead of being replaced.

Jimmy Haslam appeared to be toying with that notion as well. The owner initially wanted to bring in a football voice to complement Brown rather than replace him, but after research, he decided Brown couldn’t be part of the new equation. Interestingly, Brown lieutenants Paul DePodesta and Andrew Berry will. And each won’t have to report to Dorsey, in a unique arrangement.

Rumors about the Browns searching for execs with stronger football backgrounds came out of Cleveland back in mid-October, and although the Browns denied it, that point in time seems to add up with the five- to six-week search process multiple outlets have reported encompassed this shakeup effort.

Wolf’s involvement is interesting given that he’d played this role before. The former Packers GM has done this at multiple junctures in the past. He served in a consultant role and recommended the hire of Mike Holmgren as team president and also met with Haslam late in 2015, doing so prior to Haslam’s decision to bring in the new-age front office.

Wolf’s son, Packers exec Eliot Wolf, was mentioned as a possible candidate, but it’s clear the Browns were not especially interested in going through traditional channels via offseason interview process to fill this vacancy.

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC West

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC West teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Broncos, Chiefs, Raiders, and Chargers are noted below.

Additionally, as of 12:00pm CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s AFC West transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day. All links go to Twitter unless otherwise noted:

Denver Broncos

Kansas City Chiefs

Oakland Raiders

San Diego Chargers

Broncos Cut Players To Get To 53

The Broncos are making their way to 53. Here’s the list of cuts: "<strong

Thompson, an undrafted free agent, clawed his way on to the 53-man roster in each of the last two season. Unfortunately, he was not able to make the final cut this year thanks to the numbers crunch in the backfield and his lingering injuries. In 2014, the Duke product ran for 272 yards off of 54 carries with three rushing touchdowns. He also added four catches for 25 yards. Last season, Thompson appeared in 15 regular season games but carried the ball only 18 times for 48 yards while adding six catches for 51 yards. Andy Janovich will likely serve as Denver’s fullback with Thompson gone.

Peko got the highest bonus of any undrafted rookie free agent this year so it is a mild surprise to see him cut. The defensive tackle and other players on today’s cut list should find their way to Denver’s taxi squad.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/8/16

Today’s minor moves:

  • The Lions waived wide receiver Damian Copeland and signed fellow wide receiver Alex Chisum, as Justin Rogers of The Detroit News tweets.
  • The Saints have signed long snapper Chris Highland, according to a source who spoke with Nick Underhill of The Advocate (on Twitter).
  • The Broncos have waived defensive end Kenny Anunike as he continues to be dogged by knee troubles, Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com tweets. In a related move, the Broncos have signed safety Ryan Murphy. Murphy spent last season on the Broncos’ practice squad and was famously sent home from the Super Bowl. Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post (on Twitter) hears that Anunike passed his physical before being waived.
  • The Buccaneers signed offensive lineman Kelvin Palmer, as Roy Cummings of The Tampa Tribune tweets.
  • The Jets announced that they have signed wide receiver Anthony Kelly and defensive lineman Christo Bilukidi, waived/injured defensive lineman Julien Obioha, and placed wide receiver Chris King on the reserve/did not report list.
  • The Browns signed defensive lineman Chigbo Anunoby and waived fellow defensive lineman Kyle Rose, as Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer (on Twitter).
  • The Steelers removed Quinton Schooley from their injured reserve with an injury settlement, as Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets.
  • The Chargers announced that they have signed wide receiver Rico Richardson and defensive tackle Zamir Carlis. To make room, they waived offensive lineman Mike McQueen and punter Kasey Redfern. With Redfern out of the way, it appears that Drew Kaser has won the team’s punting competition.
  • The Redskins waived linebacker Steven Daniels with an injury designation, as John Keim of ESPN.com tweets.

AFC Rumors: Slauson, Chargers, Bills, V. Miller

All along, Matt Slauson has planned on visiting both the Chargers and the Bills and he will not rush his decision, Michael Gehlken of U-T San Diego tweets. After wrapping up his visit with San Diego on Wednesday, the center/guard is now meeting with team brass in Buffalo. Slauson doesn’t have a deal with the Bolts yet, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything one way or the other.

Here’s more out of the AFC:

  • Contract talks are at a standstill between Von Miller and the Broncos, but the Super Bowl MVP says that he doesn’t plan on going anywhere. “I’m going to be here in Denver no matter what,” Miller said, as Cameron Wolfe of The Denver Post writes. “The contract is going to take care of itself. I’m going to be a Denver Bronco for life.” Miller, who was hit with the franchise tag, is not expected to take part in team workouts this week.
  • Patriots long snapper Joe Cardona “may have to leave the Patriots for a year or so,” a Navy official told The Dan Patrick Show (transcript via ESPN.com). The second-year player has been assigned to a ship, which prompted New England to sign free agent long snapper Christian Yount.
  • Chiefs rookie return specialist Tyreek Hill will not be subject to NFL discipline upon entering the league but could be considered a repeat offender under its conduct policy if he is involved in another incident of domestic violence, as Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star writes. The fifth-round choice out of West Alabama pleaded guilty in August 2015 to a domestic abuse incident involving his pregnant girlfriend. The policy only applies when the player’s first infraction occurs while the player is in the NFL. However, the league will not hesitate to hit Hill with advanced punishment if another incident takes place.

Sunday Roundup: Mularkey, Gase, McDaniels

As we roll into the final week of the regular season, let’s round up some news and notes from around the league:

  • We learned earlier today that Titans interim head coach Mike Mularkey will receive serious consideration to be the team’s permanent head coach, and Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports explains that although there are aspects of the Tennessee top job that make it appealing, questions about ownership could force some big name candidates to steer clear. If Mularkey does get the job, Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com (via Twitter) expects the team to make changes to the rest of its coaching staff.
  • La Canfora was busy on Twitter this afternoon, reporting that the Browns, Dolphins, and Eagles all have serious interest in making Bears OC Adam Gase their next head coach, and that the Titans and Giants head coaching jobs would be the most appealing to Patriots OC Josh McDaniels (Twitter links).
  • La Canfora also tweets that Mike Holmgren‘s reported interest in the 49ers‘ head coaching position should not be discounted, though he also tweets that San Francisco will give strong consideration to Chip Kelly if and when Jim Tomsula is fired. Mike Silver of NFL.com tweets that Kelly himself has reached out to express his interest in the job, along with Mike Shanahan. As Silver notes (via Twitter) the 49ers’ head coaching job is much more appealing than is commonly perceived.
  • Jenna Laine of SportsTalkFlorida.com tweets that Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter has received interest from at least one club looking for a new head coach.
  • Hall-of-Fame executive Ron Wolf had lunch with Browns owner Jimmy Haslam several weeks ago, but per Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com, Wolf denied that Haslam asked him to serve as a consultant for the club. Wolf said he has had no contact with Haslam since that lunch. Wolf’s son, Eliot, currently works as the Packers‘ director of player personnel and is rumored to be Cleveland’s top choice to fill its soon-to-be-vacant GM role.
  • Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Kevin Patra of NFL.com) writes that the Raiders, Chargers, and Rams will all apply for relocation in advance of Monday’s deadline, with the expected relocation fee to be a whopping $550MM per team that relocates. The league will assist whatever club or clubs that get left out of the LA sweepstakes to secure a new home.

Browns Meet With Ex-Packers GM Ron Wolf

The Browns met with former Packers GM Ron Wolf, as Jason Wilde of ESPN.com writes. Wolf claimed that he was not offered any type of formal consulting role with the team, but Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland (Twitter link) hears otherwise.

Cleveland enters Week 17 with a 3-12 record and it’s fair to say that the jobs of coach Mike Pettine and GM Ray Farmer could be in jeopardy. If Farmer is removed as GM, one likely candidate would be Ron Wolf’s son, Eliot Wolf who serves as the Packers’ director of player personnel. However, the elder Wolf said Monday that he will not be involved in any way if the Browns decide to replace Farmer and want to pursue Eliot.

No, no. That’s already come up,” Wolf said, according to Wilde. “I told [owner Jimmy Haslam] that that is an entirely different situation. He’d have to do that himself. I would not be a part of it.”

Wolf, 76, was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame last summer in the newly created contributor category. Wolf, who took over the Packers in November 1991, is the man responsible for hiring coach Mike Holmgren and acquiring Brett Favre and Reggie White. In 2004, Wolf served as a consultant for the Browns and encouraged them to hire Holmgren as team president.