Will Herring

Rams To Sign Will Herring

Linebacker Will Herring took to Twitter to announce that he’s joining the Rams. “Thankful to be joining the Rams Nation!! Time to work!,” tweeted the veteran.

It’s unclear if the deal is signed or simply agreed to. Herring thought he had a deal ironed out with the Cowboys back in March, only to see Dallas pull the plug before pen was put to paper. Herring also announced that deal via Twitter when he wrote: “Blessed to be playing in the Big D this year and to be a part of Cowboys organization!”

Herring, a seven-year NFL veteran, has played primarily in a reserve role as a linebacker for the Seahawks and Saints since being drafted in the fifth round in 2007. However, he has blossomed into a strong special teamer, serving as the captain of the unit for the Saints in 2013 and recording 13 special teams tackles.

We haven’t heard much from the 31-year-old since his September audition for the Titans, but it looks like he has finally found a home.

Audition Notes: Titans, Giants

As we approach halftime of the late afternoon contests, we have a couple audition notes to pass along:

Rory Parks contributed to this post.

Visit Updates: Manningham, Britt, Bridgewater

Several notes on player visits:

  • Receiver Mario Manningham will meet the Giants on Monday, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN. Manningham played for the Giants from 2008-2011 before signing with the 49ers.
  • Receiver Kenny Britt will meet with the Redskins after he visits the Patriots, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. We noted earlier today that Washington was attempting to schedule a visit with the free agent.
  • Linebacker Will Herring visited the Cowboys on Saturday, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. A previous deal between the two parties fell through.
  • The Chiefs met with offensive tackle J’Marcus Webb, according to ESPN’s Adam Caplan (Twitter link).
  • Caplan also tweets that fullback Erik Lorig met the Saints, who do not have a fullback on the roster after non-tendering Jed Collins.
  • Linebacker Rob Jackson will meet with the Raiders, per Mike Jones of the Washington Post (via Twitter).
  • Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater met with the Vikings staff, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.

Cowboys Won’t Sign Will Herring

4:05pm: The decision to scrap Herring’s deal doesn’t sound like it was as mutual as initially suggested. Archer follows up his earlier reporting by tweeting that the linebacker’s agent is upset with the Cowboys. According to the agent, his client passed his physical, but the team believes he may be an injury risk and reneged on the agreement.

FRIDAY, 1:53pm: After agreeing to terms earlier this week, the Cowboys and Herring have decided to scrap their deal, with both sides agreeing to walk away, according to Todd Archer of ESPNDallas.com. A source tells Archer that Herring didn’t fail his physical, so it’s not entirely clear why the two sides decided not to finalize the deal.

THURSDAY, 5:00pm: The Cowboys appear to have reached a contract agreement with free agent linebacker Will Herring, according to Herring himself. The former Saint sent out a tweet today, announcing the deal: “Blessed to be playing in the Big D this year and to be a part of Cowboys organization!”

Herring, a seven-year NFL veteran, has played primarily in a reserve role as a linebacker for the Seahawks and Saints since being drafted in the fifth round in 2007. However, he has become a key contributor on special teams, serving as the captain of the unit for the Saints in 2013 and recording 13 special teams tackles.

Contract Details: Munnerlyn, Dawson, McBride

Here are a few extra details on contracts that have been agreed to and signed in recent days:

  • Captain Munnerlyn‘s three-year contract with the Vikings, initially reported to be worth $14.25MM, is actually worth $11.25MM, but another $3.3MM can be added through escalators and incentives, says Tom Pelissero of USA Today (via Twitter). The deal includes $4.45MM guaranteed in guaranteed money, but Pelissero tweets that due to a small signing bonus, it could potentially just turn into a one-year contract if 2014 doesn’t go well.
  • According to Pelissero (via Twitter), the two-year contract Phil Dawson signed with the 49ers is worth a total of $6.134MM and came with a $2MM signing bonus.
  • The two-year deal Trumaine McBride inked with the Giants is worth $2.875MM, with a $100K signing bonus and $900K in roster bonuses, tweets Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun.
  • Wilson (via Twitter) has Will Herring‘s one-year contract with the Cowboys as an $855K base salary plus a $65K signing bonus. That would seem to suggest it’s a minimum salary benefit deal, but Wilson says the total is $1.02MM, which indicates there’s another $100K in bonuses somewhere. Either way, $300K of the deal is guaranteed, says Wilson.
  • According to Wilson (via Twitter), Phil Costa‘s contract with the Colts features base salaries of $1.2MM (2014) and $1.5MM (2015), with no bonuses. $450K of Costa’s first-year salary is guaranteed.
  • Wilson adds (via Twitter) that Henry Hynoski‘s $1MM contract with the Giants includes a $250K signing bonus.
  • Although we heard yesterday that Chris Williams‘ contract with the Bills included a 2016 “trigger point,” when Williams was owed a significant roster bonus, the deal has been modified since being entered in the NFLPA system, says ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak. Instead of having a $1.5MM signing bonus and $2.5MM roster bonus in ’16, the deal now features a $3.5MM signing bonus and $250K roster bonus.