HEADLINES

Sherrick McManis

North Notes: Revis, Ngata, Steelers, Packers

March 10th, 2015 at 4:44pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Steelers looked into signing Darrelle Revis, but it doesn’t look like it’s possible, per Adam Schefter of ESPN (Twitter link), who says that it’s down to the Jets and Patriots for the star corner. Revis was asking for more money than Pittsburgh could afford, tweets Aditi Kinkhabwala of the NFL Network.

Meanwhile, the Packers have emerged as a suitor for Revis, adds Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (via Twitter), who lists the Jets, Pats, Packers, and a mystery team as the finalists for Revis.

Here’s more from the North divisions:

  • The Lions are expected to approach the recently-acquired Haloti Ngata about an extension, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Ngata is entering the final year of his contract.
  • The Packers had a “few discussions” with free agent defensive tackle Terrance Knighton, per Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Twitter link), but a deal isn’t likely. Green Bay has had discussions about retaining Letroy Guion and B.J. Raji, but the club could wait out the DT market.
  • Looking to retain one of the core special teams players, the Bears have interest in re-signing cornerback Sherrick McManis, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, though nothing is yet in the works.

NFC Notes: Melton, Falcons, Clark, McManis

December 29th, 2014 at 2:45pm CST by Luke Adams

Ndamukong Suh‘s one-game suspension is the bigger story, but the Lions may not be the only team in this weekend’s Wild Card showdown with the Cowboys that’s missing a key defensive tackle. As Ian Rapoport of NFL.com first reported (via Twitter), Cowboys lineman Henry Melton sustained a leg injury that could sideline him for the postseason. Melton’s agent, Jordan Woy, confirmed to Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com (Twitter link) that his client suffered a bone bruise on his knee, and the timeline for his return appears to be a matter of weeks rather than days.

Here’s more from around the NFC on a busy Monday:

  • In addition to requesting permission to speak to Dan Quinn and Adam Gase about their head coaching vacancy, as we’d previously learned, the Falcons have also asked for interviews with Cardinals defensive coordinator Todd Bowles and Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, reports Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter links). Both coaches have Wild Card games coming up, so they aren’t allowed to interview for head coaching jobs this week.
  • Speaking to reporters today, including Jeff Darlington of NFL.com (Twitter link), Washington head coach Jay Gruden said he’ll recommend to owner Daniel Snyder and GM Bruce Allen that the club should retain defensive coordinator Jim Haslett.
  • Washington‘s Ryan Clark has yet to decide whether he’ll continue his playing career, according to Mike Jones of the Washington Post, who tweets that the veteran safety is expected to make his decision within the next couple days. Dianna Marie Russini of NBC4 believes Clark will call it a career, tweeting that the safety will simply sign the necessary papers rather than making a big announcement.
  • According to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter), the Bears made an attempt last week to lock up cornerback Sherrick McManis to a two-year contract extension, but the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement.
  • The Buccaneers will be on the lookout for an offensive coordinator in the coming days and weeks, and head coach Lovie Smith says he wants to “talk to as many people as I possibly can,” according to Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com (Twitter link).
  • Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder, who is eligible for free agency this winter, said today that he’ll start researching potential landing spots later in the week, tweets Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 Twin Cities.

Biggs On Bears: Clausen, McCray, McManis

August 23rd, 2014 at 2:00pm CST by Matt Feminis

One of the heartiest post-game reads around is the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs’ “10 thoughts,” and this morning’s wrap-up of the Bears’ loss in Seattle is full of tid-bits:

  • Technically teams have until 3 p.m. Tuesday to cut down from 90 to 75, but Biggs expects an announcement before Monday. “That’s because the Bears (and other teams) don’t want to go back to the practice field to prepare for the exhibition finale and have a player slated for the first wave of cuts suffer an injury. In that scenario, the team could be on the hook for several hundred thousand dollars if the injury is bad enough.”
  • Jimmy Clausen should be Jay Cutler‘s backup, in Biggs’ opinion. While the preseason numbers for Clausen and Jordan Palmer are similar, Clausen has looked more decisive and experienced.
  • “All signs point” to Danny McCray starting at safety in Week 1. “At this point, McCray might be about the only choice the Bears have at free safety,” says Biggs.
  • Austen Lane and Trevor Scott have shown well enough to wonder if the Bears will keep five defensive ends. David Bass, who was part of the rotation last season, looks like the odd man out.
  • Eben Britton‘s injury has opened the door for Michael Ola, who has played well and shown desirable versatility, increasing the chance he earns one of the team’s reserve lineman spots. Marc Trestman values his sixth lineman, as he used Britton for 235 snaps last season, primarily as an eligible tackle. “In a perfect world, coach Marc Trestman has a player that wears an eligible number to handle that role this season as an in-line blocker, extra tight end or even a presence in the backfield,” says Biggs, which is why tight end Matthew Mulligan looks like a “good bet” to secure a roster spot.
  • In “I’m not saying, I’m just saying” fashion, Biggs highlights the play of Sherrick McManis, a 26-year-old cornerback whose value to this point in his career has been as a core special-teams player. However, the Bears No. 4 and No. 5 cornerback spots are up for grabs, and Biggs notes “Since training camp has opened, McManis is at the tops of a chart in the defensive backs room for takeaways. He’s not only practiced well, he’s played well in preseason and has seven tackles on defense, one interception, one tackle for loss two passes deflected and two stops on special teams.” Biggs intimates McManis’ situation could have the Bears front office flashing back to that of Corey Graham, whom the team undervalued. Graham went on to earn a two-year deal in Baltimore where he played well enough on defense to get $8.1MM guaranteed from the Bills this March.

Contract Details: Edelman, Meriweather, Harper

March 19th, 2014 at 2:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are a few more contract details on deals recently signed by free agents:

  • In addition to including a $5MM signing bonus, Julian Edelman‘s four-year deal with the Patriots features yearly base salaries of $1MM, $2.25MM, $2.5MM, and $3MM, with various roster bonuses and workout bonuses making up the rest of the $17MM total. Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun tweeted the details, and Jason Fitzgerald of OverTheCap.com presents them in chart form.
  • Fitzgerald notes that Brandon Meriweather‘s one-year pact with the Redskins includes a $145K signing bonus, the only guaranteed money in the deal.
  • Fitzgerald also provides the details on Roman Harper‘s new deal with the Panthers, which is technically a five-year contract. The pact includes three voidable years to help spread out the cap hit.
  • Jamon Meredith‘s two-year contract with the Buccaneers is worth $2.7MM, with $350K in guaranteed money and up to $750K available in playing time incentives, according to Aaron Wilson (via Twitter).
  • The contract Sherrick McManis agreed to sign with the Bears will be a minimum salary benefit deal, confirms Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter).

Bears To Re-Sign Sherrick McManis

March 19th, 2014 at 10:01am CST by Luke Adams

The Bears have agreed to terms with cornerback and special teams contributor Sherrick McManis, according to the team (Twitter link). The club will bring McManis to Chicago on a one-year contract.

McManis, 26, only saw a dozen snaps on defense last year for the Bears, but he played on the kick and punt coverage units, contributing nine special teams tackles over the course of the season. Given his lack of playing time, McManis figures to be be back on a minimum salary deal without much guaranteed money included.

Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reported yesterday that the Bears were working to re-sign McManis, who also reportedly drew interest from the Ravens, Eagles, and Falcons.

FA Rumors: Cromartie, Murphy, Allen, Britt

March 18th, 2014 at 1:21pm CST by Luke Adams

Let’s follow up this morning’s summary of the latest free agent rumors with another round for the early afternoon:

  • A league source tells Brian Costello of the New York Post (Twitter link) not to expect the Jets to re-sign Antonio Cromartie. “They’re not being very aggressive,” the source said, repeating what is becoming a common refrain in discussions on the Jets’ approach to free agency.
  • Still in the market for receiving help, the Buccaneers are hosting free agent Louis Murphy today, reports Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter).
  • Once he completes his visit with the Cowboys, Jared Allen intends to head home and weigh his options, according to Rapoport, who tweets that the veteran defensive end is unlikely to make a decision today. Allen could also decide to make more visits to teams after Dallas, Rapoport notes (via Twitter).
  • We heard on the weekend that wide receiver Kenny Britt would be meeting with the Redskins at some point this week, and that visit happened today, according to Albert Breer of the NFL Network (via Twitter).
  • After visiting the Bucs yesterday, cornerback Mike Jenkins is meeting with the Cardinals today, tweets Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic.
  • The Bears continue to have interest in re-signing cornerback and key special teams player Sherrick McManis, writes Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. Biggs suggested last week that the Ravens, Eagles, and Falcons could be in the mix for McManis, but the Bears remain in talks to bring him back.

NFC Rumors: Sproles, Tuck, Suh, Watson

March 11th, 2014 at 1:22pm CST by Zachary Links

Let’s check on the latest miscellaneous notes from around the NFC….

  • The Saints are set to cut Darren Sproles today, but they are still holding out hope on trading him, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. There are more than ten teams interested in the diminutive tailback if he’s cut free, so it’s conceivable that they could find a trade partner.
  • Justin Tuck‘s exploration of the free agent market may end up with him returning to the Giants, a source tells Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Florio hears that one team was willing to pay Tuck $3MM per year, but the veteran defensive end would prefer to remain in New York at that price.
  • Talks have yet to start between the Lions and Ndamukong Suh on reworking his deal, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The thinking previously was that Detroit had to re-work the deal before the start of free agency but that’s not the case.
  • Buccaneers linebacker Dekoda Watson is likely to sign elsewhere at the start of free agency, a league source tells Mike Florio.
  • The Bears would like to bring back cornerback/special teams player Sherrick McManis, but the Ravens, Eagles, and Falcons could be in play as well, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.
  • With Donte Whitner set to leave the 49ers, San Francisco could turn to safety Ryan Mundy as a fallback, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.
  • Free agent left tackle Jared Veldheer has fired his agent in order to hire his brother, James Veldheer, as his new agent, tweets Mike Jurecki of FOX Sports 910. Veldheer is expected to sign with the Cardinals.
  • The Redskins are monitoring Kenny Britt, who could be had on a reasonable deal in a soft market, tweets Zac Boyer of the Washington Times. Of course, the Redskins’ likely deal with Andre Roberts lessens their need for Britt.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

FA Rumors: McCown, Pettigrew, Giants, Cards

March 11th, 2014 at 10:32am CST by Luke Adams

Free agency rumors are pouring in, with less than five hours until the market officially opens. Let’s round them up….

  • Quarterback Josh McCown expects to get a deal done quickly once free agency opens, and has one or two specific teams at the top of his list, as he told SiriusXM NFL Radio this morning (Twitter link).
  • The Lions continue to talk to tight end Brandon Pettigrew, but a deal before the deadline appears unlikely, so he should hit the open market, says Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter).
  • Centers Evan Dietrich-Smith and Brian De La Puente appear unlikely to land with the Giants, according to Jordan Raanan of NJ.com.
  • Expect the Cardinals to pursue free agent linebacker Mike Neal, tweets Mike Garafolo of USA Today.
  • Free agent tight end Jeff King is highly unlikely to return to the Cardinals, says Craig Morgan of Fox Sports Arizona (via Twitter).
  • Cornerback Antoine Cason is drawing some interest, but he’ll likely wait until after the top-tier corners sign to find a deal, tweets Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com.
  • Emmanuel Sanders is among the names on the list of wide receiver targets for the Browns, tweets Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com.
  • Since being released late last month by the Patriots, safety Steve Gregory has received some interest, and expects to sign after the bigger dominos fall, tweets Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald.
  • It looks like Bears cornerback and ace special-teamer Sherrick McManis will reach the open market today, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.