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Tim Barnes

NFC Notes: Mathis, Flowers, Rams

June 13th, 2015 at 2:18pm CST by Rob DiRe

Offensive lineman don’t always make the most headlines, but when a high-profile blocker like Evan Mathis gets released everyone starts to pay attention.

Aside from fans, analysts, and general managers, the NFLPA has also taken interest in the All-Pro guard’s release, according to Tim McManus of PhillyMag.com (via Twitter). The Association is currently in the “information-gathering” phase of the process.

The NFLPA could be investigating whether the team’s decision to cut Mathis was a direct result of his absence at voluntary offseason workouts, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

The more likely explanation for the investigation, writes Florio, that the Eagles cut him after reports that the team removed an offer to rework his contract because Howie Roseman was no longer the team’s general manager.

Here are a few more nots regarding offensive linemen in the NFC:

  • With Mathis and Todd Herremans no longer on the team, the Eagles will have a tall task to replace both starting guards from 2014. Zach Berman of Philly.com lists all of the teams options, including a number of names already on the roster and a few free agent options, like Davin Joseph and Dan Connolly.
  • Giants’ first-round pick Ereck Flowers is one of the last unsigned draft picks left, which is notable because he is also one of the few rookies who has elected not to hire an agent. However, he still is confident that he will get a deal done, writes Jordan Raanan of NJ.com, saying that negotiations are “going good.”
  • With Scott Wells out of the picture, the Rams will have three players competing to start at center, writes Joe Lyons of STLToday.com. Tim Barnes, Barrett Jones, and Demetrius Rhaney are battling for the job, and all three are still in the running to start. “We’re not going to make a decision real early,” said head coach Jeff Fisher. “We’ll let them all play. We’re rotating them. They’re all getting opportunities to work with (new quarterback Nick Foles), so he’s familiar, not only with the exchanges, but also the communication. We’ll make that decision when somebody shows us he’s earned the job.”

NFC West Notes: Lee, Davis, Washington

June 6th, 2015 at 2:39pm CST by Sam Robinson

Anthony Davis‘ sudden retirement announcement and caveat this may be a boxing-style sabbatical rather than a move similar to ex-teammates Patrick Willis or Chris Borland will feature financial ramifications.

Should Davis indeed return next season or in 2017, it will likely cost him the signing bonus money he intends to pay back to the 49ers, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The 49ers will place the right tackle on their reserve/retired list, retaining his rights and locking in his 2015 salary for the next season in which Davis plays, if he does. But Florio notes the 2011 labor deal doesn’t contain language about a player returning to the game’s ability to recoup signing bonus money he returned, which could lead to the 49ers and the NFL management council to argue that the bonus money is gone forever. In Davis’ case, that figure is $4.66MM.

NFL Insiders also suggest to Florio that Davis could have said his 2014 concussion was limiting his ability to play and force the 49ers to either cut him or place him on injured reserve instead of him retiring with a much bigger hint at a return to the game than most who retire offer, complicating this process.

Here are a few other Saturday-afternoon items from the NFC West.

  • Retirement, trades or free agency have besieged the 49ers’ Pro Bowl contingent of its roster, which was one of the league’s healthier stables last season, writes Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. The team’s trade of Andy Lee marked the fifth Pro Bowl performer — after Mike Iupati and Frank Gore‘s traditional exits, and the retirements of Patrick Willis and Justin Smith — San Francisco has lost in the past three months.
  • The 33-year-old Lee, midway through a six-year, $20.5MM extension he signed in 2012, will make $2.55MM this season in Cleveland, but his cap figure balloons to $4.13MM by 2018, writes Branch. Assuming Lee’s spot, 21-year-old draftee Bradley Pinion led all Power 5 conference punters with 33 induced fair catches, according to Pro Football Focus. The ex-Clemson punter who’s stood out this offseason with the 49ers flashed potential in high school with a 100-yard kickoff at a national showcase.
  • Daryl Washington‘s murky future remains, especially after the Cardinals linebacker’s agent hasn’t exactly been timely with paperwork, reports Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic. Eligible for reinstatement 60 days prior to the one-year anniversary of his suspension (May 30, 2014), Washington has yet to force any action from Roger Goodell since agent Jordan Woy hasn’t submitted his reinstatement application. Woy plans to do so soon, but as Somers points out, a player who’s met the criteria to return and has the desire to do so would’ve probably had the application submitted the first day it was permitted.
  • The Rams are shuttling three candidates into first-team reps, with Tim Barnes, Demetrius Rhaney and Barrett Jones vying to replace Scott Wells, reports Joe Lyons of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Second-year pro Rhaney, from Tennessee State, received the first snapping work on Friday after spending last season on IR.
  • Greg Robinson‘s shed 20 pounds and is working out at 319 currently, notes Lyons. The 2014 No. 2 overall pick is still recovering from offseason toe surgery.

NFC West Notes: Seahawks, Barnes, Cardinals

April 3rd, 2015 at 8:45pm CST by Rob DiRe

The Seahawks are still working on a long-term deal with franchise quarterback Russell Wilson, and Danny O’Neil of 710 ESPN Seattle looks at a number of scenarios that could play out during negotiations. He notes that while a fully guaranteed deal is unlikely, and Wilson will not be able to keep open the option of playing baseball, there is a comparison to be made with the deal Tom Brady signed in 2005.

  • The Seahawks are without a first-round pick, but have ten selections between No. 63 and No. 248, and they need to add to their receiving corps, and both of their lines, writes Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times.
  • Among the possible draft prospects the Seahawks are looking into are the players from the nearby University of Washington, writes Terry Blount of ESPN. The school is expected to have four players taken in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft, including Hau’Oli Kikaha, who could be available for the Seahawks at the end of the second round.
  • Tim Barnes‘ new one-year deal with the Rams, worth a maximum of $1MM, has a modest $660K base, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). Barnes, 27 in May, has spent his entire four-year career with St. Louis.
  • Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic ran down the Cardinals‘ biggest offseason developments. Among the team’s top storylines, of course, was the new deal for wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and the departure of Todd Bowles. Unlike Fitzgerald, however, long time Cardinals veterans Darnell Dockett and center Lyle Sendlein were shown the door with one year remaining on their deals.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Rams To Re-Sign Tim Barnes

March 30th, 2015 at 5:33pm CST by Zachary Links

The Rams have re-signed free agent Tim Barnes, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). The guard/center took a trip to Kansas City on Monday, but he quickly decided to stay put in St. Louis.

Barnes, 27 in May, has spent his entire four-year career with the Rams. His new deal will carry a maximum value of $1MM, according to Thomas (via Twitter), and he could wind up competing for a starting job this year on the offensive line. Even though the Rams did not extend a tender to Barnes when he was a restricted free agent earlier this month, they apparently wanted to retain him, just at a lower salary.

The Chiefs already fortified their interior offensive line by acquiring Ben Grubbs from the Saints, but they were looking for additional pieces, having lost a big one in center Rodney Hudson. Now that Barnes is going back to the Rams, they’ll have to look elsewhere for reinforcements.

FA Rumors: Schaub, Barnes, Myers, Jaguars

March 30th, 2015 at 12:42pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raiders opted to replace Matt Schaub with Christian Ponder as their backup quarterback heading into 2015, releasing Schaub earlier this month. However, it doesn’t appear that the veteran signal-caller will be out of work for long. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (via Twitter), Schaub will likely sign a new deal this week. The Jets, Ravens, and Falcons are among the teams in the running to land him.

Let’s check in on a few other items related to free agents….

  • Free agent offensive lineman Tim Barnes, who played center and guard for the Rams, is visiting the Chiefs today, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). Kansas City already fortified its interior offensive line by acquiring Ben Grubbs from the Saints, but the team is looking for additional pieces, having lost a big one in center Rodney Hudson.
  • Speaking of free agent centers, ex-Texans lineman Chris Myers is visiting the Seahawks today, a source tells Schefter (Twitter link). Seattle sent Max Unger to New Orleans earlier in March, and has been eyeing free agent centers, including Stefen Wisniewski.
  • Ryan O’Halloran of the Florida Times-Union takes a closer look at free agent wideout Greg Jennings to determine whether he’s a fit for the Jaguars.
  • The Ravens aren’t necessarily done adding free agents, but there aren’t many noteworthy players still on the board at the positions they’d want to target. Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun examines some of the free agent options for the team at wide receiver, tight end, cornerback, and a couple other spots.

Rams Sign Garrett Reynolds

March 18th, 2015 at 4:54pm CST by Luke Adams

4:54pm: Reynolds’ new deal with the Rams is a two-year pact worth $2.2MM, a source tells Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The contract has a max value of $4.2MM.

3:46pm: The Rams have officially signed Reynolds, the team announced today (via Twitter). According to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter), the club continues to consider other linemen, including Tim Barnes, who isn’t out of the picture in St. Louis quite yet.

3:18pm: After hosting him for a free agent visit, the Rams are expected to finalized a deal with offensive lineman Garrett Reynolds, according to Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). It was Caplan who first reported earlier today that Reynolds was headed to St. Louis.

Reynolds, who started 10 games for the Falcons in 2013, lost his starting job late in the 2013 season, despite grading as Pro Football Focus’ 32nd overall guard (subscription required). The 27-year-old was subsequently cut by Atlanta and picked up by Detroit, where he spent the 2014 season as an occasional starter at right guard and right tackle for the Lions.

Reynolds’ ability to play both guard and tackle could come in handy for the Rams, who are in need of players at both spots. Greg Robinson and Rodger Saffold figure to man left tackle and left guard respectively, but Jake Long and Scott Wells were cut by the club, and Joe Barksdale and Davin Joseph are free agents, so center, right guard, and right tackle are still up in the air. Reynolds may not be penciled in as a starter, but he should have the opportunity to compete for a regular job.

FA Rumors: Morgan, Orakpo, Cameron

March 12th, 2015 at 2:28pm CST by Zachary Links

Derrick Morgan won’t be signing with the Buccaneers, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The Falcons are out on Morgan too after signing Adrian Clayborn, Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com tweets. More free agent news from around the league..

  • The Titans are still in the hunt for both Morgan and Brian Orakpo, and their best-case scenario would be to land both edge defenders, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean.
  • Tight end Jordan Cameron is still in Miami and there’s a lot of mutual interest between him and the Dolphins, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Meanwhile, his old team, the Browns, remain the mix and a third team is also in the running.
  • Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter link) hears that there has been a lot of interest in free agent defensive end Michael Johnson, but it’s unclear if any team besides the Bengals or Vikings have a shot at him. Johnson, of course, played for Cincinnati prior to joining the Bucs last year, and was coached there by Mike Zimmer.
  • The Chiefs have had exploratory talks with former Rams center Tim Barnes, Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star tweets. Paylor expects the Chiefs to sign a veteran center, whether it’s Barnes or someone else.
  • The Steelers are generally quiet when it comes to free agency and trades, but Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter) hears that they’re exploring options for a kick returner.

Rams Tender Rodney McLeod, Two Others

March 6th, 2015 at 11:45pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier tonight, we heard that the Rams tendered offers to ensure that exclusive rights free agents Chase Reynolds and Brandon Washington remain with the team. However, those weren’t the only free agent tenders issued by the team on Friday. According to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter links), the club also tendered offers to safety Rodney McLeod, quarterback Austin Davis, and tight end Cory Harkey.

McLeod, who was eligible for restricted free agency, was the only player of the trio to receive a second-round tender, worth $2.356MM. The offer ensures that if McLeod gets an offer to sign elsewhere, the Rams would have the opportunity to sign an offer sheet, and would receive a second-round pick as compensation if they chose to let him go. When I previewed the Rams’ offseason earlier in the week, I identified the safety as one of the free agents the team would make an effort to retain, since he has established himself as a solid starter and is still entering his prime.

Davis and Harkey were both eligible to be restricted free agents as well, and they received the minimum-level tender from the team — that’s a one-year offer worth $1.542MM. Of the two, Davis seems more likely to draw interest from another club, and if he were to sign an offer sheet, the Rams wouldn’t receive any compensation if they didn’t match the offer. Depending on what St. Louis decides to do with prospective free agent quarterback Shaun Hill, Davis could return to the team as the No. 2 signal-caller behind Sam Bradford next season.

Offensive lineman Tim Barnes, another potential restricted free agent, didn’t receive a tender offer from the Rams, meaning he’ll be an unrestricted free agent next week, tweets Thomas.

Minor Moves: 49ers, Rams, Lions, Broncos

April 25th, 2014 at 5:42pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Friday’s minor transactions from around the NFL, including a pair of free agents accepting their contract tenders, two other minor signings, and a roster cut….

  • Demarcus Dobbs, who received a $1.431MM restricted free agent tender from the 49ers, has accepted and signed it, the club announced today in a press release. Dobbs will compete for playing time on the defensive line, and may also contribute on special teams and even on offense, where he has played some tight end.
  • Rams center Tim Barnes, who started the last four games of the 2013 season, has signed his exclusive rights free agent tender, reports Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). Barnes will be in line for a $570K salary in 2014.
  • The Lions have signed center Sherman Carter and wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt to contracts after bringing the players to camp for tryouts earlier this week, tweets Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. Carter was on the 49ers’ roster last summer, while Roosevelt has some previous NFL regular-season experience with the Bills.
  • The Broncos have cut offensive tackle Mike Farrell, according to Mike Klis of The Denver Post (on Twitter). Farrell, who signed a futures contract with Denver at the end of the 2013 regular season, will have to pass through waivers before becoming an unrestricted free agent.

Contract Tenders: Rams, Vikings, Raiders

March 5th, 2014 at 4:57pm CST by Luke Adams

With free agency approaching, teams are working to lock up their exclusive rights free agents and to retain the right of first refusal on their restricted free agents. Here are the contract tenders teams have placed on those FAs so far on Wednesday: