NFC Contract Details: Ayers, Shelby, Perry
Here are a few of the latest contract details from around the NFC on recently agreed-upon and signed deals. All links are courtesy of Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle unless otherwise indicated…
NFC South:
- Robert Ayers, DE (Buccaneers): Three years, $19.5MM. $10.5MM guaranteed. $2.5MM roster bonus due on March 16. $2MM roster bonus due on fifth day of 2017 league year. $1MM roster bonus due on fifth day of 2018 league year. $550K annually in sacks incentives (Twitter links).
- Derrick Shelby, DE (Falcons): Four years, $18MM. $7.5MM guaranteed. $5MM signing bonus. Annual $1MM base escalator from 2017 to 2019 (Twitter links).
- Matt Schaub, QB (Falcons): One year, $1.75MM. $500K signing bonus. Up to $1MM in playing-time and 53-man roster incentives (Twitter link).
NFC East:
- Tress Way, P (Washington): Five years, $7.8MM. $2.35MM guaranteed. $1.25MM signing bonus. Up to $400K in annual escalators from 2017 to 2020 (Twitter link via Master Tesfatsion of the Washington Post).
- Nigel Bradham, LB (Eagles): Two years, $7MM. $4.5MM guaranteed. $1.5MM signing bonus. $500K base escalator for 2017 (Twitter link).
- Kyle WIlber, LB (Cowboys): Two years, $3.25MM. $1MM signing bonus. $1MM playing-time incentive (Twitter link).
- Logan Paulsen, TE (Washington): One year, minimum salary benefit. $35K signing bonus. $45K bonus for being on 53-man roster for first game (Twitter link).
NFC North:
- Nick Perry, OLB (Packers): One year, $5MM. $1.5MM signing bonus. $2.3MM base salary. Up to $1MM in per-game active roster bonuses. $200K workout bonus. Up to $250K in incentives (Twitter links via Wilson and Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com).
- Marcus Sherels, CB (Vikings): Two years, $4MM. $1.5MM guaranteed. $500K roster bonus due on March 16. $100K in annual punt return average incentives. $50K annual Pro Bowl incentive (Twitter links).
- Rafael Bush, S (Lions): One year, $2.4MM. $250K signing bonus. $250K in per-game roster bonuses. Up to $900K in playing-time bonuses (Twitter link via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press).
- Don Muhlbach, LS (Lions): One year, minimum salary benefit. $80K signing bonus (Twitter link).
NFC West:
- Jermaine Gresham, TE (Cardinals): One year, $3.5MM. $3MM guaranteed. $500K in per-game active roster bonuses. $500K in incentives for stats, playing time (Twitter link).
Bucs Sign Josh Robinson
The Buccaneers announced that they have signed cornerback Josh Robinson on a one-year deal.Robinson spent the last four seasons with the Vikings. 
While he doesn’t come with the same name value, Robinson will now join a Bucs’ defense that has added former GIants defensive end Robert Ayers as well as cornerback Brent Grimes.
The Central Florida product was limited to only five games in 2015 due to an unfortunate pectoral injury suffered prior to the season. From 2012-14, Robinson saw time in 42 games with 21 starts for Minnesota. Over that span, he racked up 146 tackles, five interceptions, 15 passes defensed and a forced fumble.
Robinson is not to be confused with the running back of the same name.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
FA Rumors: Okung, Galette, Raji, Forte
Free agent offensive tackle Russell Okung has offers on the table from the Lions, Steelers, and Giants, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com, who reports (via Twitter) that Okung is talking to Steelers offensive line coach Mike Munchak today. Meanwhile, Jordan Raanan of NJ.com (Twitter link) hears that the Giants are probably an underdog for the former first-round pick, who has no other visits scheduled for now.
While La Canfora doesn’t indicate that the Seahawks have made a formal offer to Okung, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Seattle is out of it. We heard last week that the Seahawks were making a push to bring back their tackle, and it’s possible he’ll give his longtime team a chance to match offers he receives from rival suitors. Since he’s representing himself, Okung’s time on the market has lasted a little longer than it otherwise might have, but it looks like there’s a decent chance of him getting something done this week.
Let’s round up a few more free agent rumors from around the NFL…
- Junior Galette remains in a holding pattern, according to Mike Jones of the Washington Post, who reports that the pass rusher would like a one-year deal that would pay him in the $7-9MM range. Jones writes that Washington has made one-, two-, and three-year offers to Galette, but they’re all low on base salaries and heavy on incentives.
- The Panthers are in the market for players to contribute to their defensive tackle rotation, and David Newton of ESPN.com says that the team has interest in B.J. Raji. Carolina also brought in Paul Soliai for a visit over the weekend, as we previously heard.
- In a conversation with reporters, including Rich Cimini of ESPN.com (Twitter links), Matt Forte said today that the Buccaneers and Cowboys were among his suitors, and the Patriots and Packers also expressed “minor interest.” Forte, who ultimately signed with the Jets, added that not receiving an offer from the Bears was a “hard pill to swallow.”
- According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter), defensive tackle Sammie Lee Hill is the latest in a series of interior defenders to visit the Seahawks, who are looking to beef up the middle of the line in the wake of Brandon Mebane‘s departure.
Watt, Bryant, Others Get Salary Guarantees
Several NFL players have contracts containing language which states that they’ll get a full or partial salary guarantees for 2016 and/or 2017 if they remained on their respective teams on Sunday, the fifth day of the league year. Let’s check in on those players (link courtesy of CBS Sports’ Joel Corry):
- Ryan Tannehill, quarterback (Dolphins): $3.5MM of $17.975MM base salary for 2017 is guaranteed.
- Dez Bryant, wide receiver (Cowboys): $13MM base salary for 2017 is guaranteed.
- T.Y. Hilton, wide receiver (Colts): $3MM base salary for 2016 is guaranteed. $6MM roster bonus now
payable. - Anthony Castonzo, offensive tackle (Colts): $2.5MM base salary for 2016 is guaranteed. $4.5MM roster bonus now payable.
- Tyron Smith, offensive tackle (Cowboys): $10MM base salary for 2016 is guaranteed.
- Branden Albert, offensive tackle (Dolphins): $6MM of $8.245MM base salary for 2017 is guaranteed.
- Mike Pouncey, center (Dolphins): $9MM base salary for 2016 is guaranteed, as is $2MM of Pouncey’s $7.95MM base salary in 2017.
- Maurkice Pouncey, center (Steelers): $3.5MM roster bonus now payable.
- Cameron Heyward, defensive end (Steelers): $5MM roster bonus now payable.
- J.J. Watt, defensive end (Texans): $10.5MM base salaries for 2016 and 2017 are guaranteed.
- Robert Quinn, defensive end (Rams): $7,777,777MM base salary for 2016 is guaranteed.
- Lavonte David, linebacker (Buccaneers): $5MM base salary for 2016 is guaranteed.
- Chris Harris Jr., cornerback (Broncos): $6.9MM base salary for 2016 is guaranteed.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Buccaneers, Chris Conte Agree To Terms
The Buccaneers have agreed to re-sign safety Chris Conte, according to Gil Arcia of TheBayCave.com (Twitter link). Jenna Laine of Sports Talk 1040 and Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune (Twitter links) have since confirmed the deal. It’ll be a one-year pact, per Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link).
Conte, 27, joined Tampa Bay last offseason, agreeing to a one-year deal worth $1.5MM that reunited him with former Bears head coach Lovie Smith. Smith, of course, was fired earlier this year and replaced by offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter, but Conte still has ties with the Buccaneers staff, as new Tampa secondary coach Jim Hoke coached Conte in Chicago.
In his first season with the Bucs, Conte started 13 games, and played the second-most snaps of any Tampa defensive back. He posted 59 tackles, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles, and graded as the No. 32 safety per Pro Football Focus before suffering a knee injury in Week 15 that ultimately landed him on injured reserve.
Conte earned an honorable mention on PFR’s list of the best free agent safeties.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
South Notes: Fleener, Weddle, Amukamara
The Colts chose to re-sign Dwayne Allen over fellow tight end Coby Fleener, and the latter went on to sign a five-year, $36MM deal with the Saints. And according to Fleener, it doesn’t sound Indianapolis put up too much of a fight to keep him. “The Colts’ lack of interest and the Saints’ interest made going to New Orleans an easy choice,” Fleener told Mike Wells of ESPN.com.
Here are a few more notes from the South divisions…
- Another former Colt, linebacker Jerrell Freeman, says the club never made him a free agent offer, according to Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). That seems to conflict from a report earlier today that indicated Indianapolis offered Freeman the same contract he ultimately signed with the Bears, but the dispute could stem from the notion that Freeman wasn’t offered a deal during free agency — this afternoon’s report said the Colts gave Freeman their proposal prior to March 9.
- The Buccaneers are not among the contenders for free agent safety Eric Weddle, tweets Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. Weddle is reportedly weighing offers from four teams, thought to be the Ravens, Steelers, Cowboys, and Raiders.
- Cornerback Prince Amukamara had other free agent trips planned, but he never got around to taking them after finding that he liked what the Jaguars were offering, Amukamara explained to reporters, including John Oehser of Jaguars.com. Amukamara agreed to a one-year deal with Jacksonville.
Miller’s Latest: Glennon, Hackenberg, Doctson
While the Buccaneers have floated the idea of acquiring a first-round pick for quarterback Mike Glennon, Matt Miller of Bleacher Report hears the Tampa Bay would accept a third-rounder if it were from a team picking relatively high. That conflicts with a recent report by Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com which said the Bucs turned down a second-round pick for its backup quarterback. Of course, La Canfora’s report didn’t given any sense of a timetable, so Tampa’s view of Glennon’s market could have changed since it rejected a second-rounder. Glennon is generating the most trade interest of any signal-caller outside of Colin Kaepernick, per Miller.
Here’s more from Miller’s latest column, with a heavy focus on the NFL draft…
- Some around the NFL don’t expect Penn State’s Christian Hackenberg to have any chance at being a first-round pick now that the Texans have signed Brock Osweiler, according to Miller. Houston head coach Bill O’Brien tutored Hackenberg at Penn State, but now Hackenberg looks to be a second- or third-round pick.
- Instead of focusing on quarterback, the Texans could now look to find help at either wide receiver or defensive tackle early in the draft, the clubs’ scouts told Miller.
- Ole Miss defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche‘s character concerns have caused some teams to take him off their draft boards, and one NFC West general manager sounds like he’s employed by one of them. “Take Nkemdiche out of your mock drafts,” the GM said, per Miller. “No one is that stupid.”
- After releasing Mike Wallace earlier this week, the Vikings are expected to target receivers early in the draft, and one player to keep an eye on could be Josh Doctson of TCU, per Miller, as a team source tells the Bleacher Report scribe that Minnesota has a high grade on Horned Frog pass-catcher.
- Linebacker Reggie Ragland struggled during his Pro Day, and could now possibly fall to the second round. One scout told Miller that the Alabama product looked “slow, sluggish, and heavy” during his workout.
- Another Alabama defender — defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson — is viewed as a two-down run-stopper, and therefore might fall out of the first round.
- Oklahoma cornerback Zack Sanchez is earning good reports from NFL scouts, says Miller, and he’s moved up enough draft boards that he could now be a late first-round pick.
- Some teams are wary of running back Devontae Booker because the Utah product has undergone two surgeries to clean up a torn meniscus.
Newton, Peterson, Others Get Salary Guarantees
Several NFL players have contracts containing language which states that they’ll get a full or partial salary guarantees for 2016 and/or 2017 if they remained on their respective teams on Friday, the third day of the league year. Let’s check in some of those players (link courtesy of CBS Sports’ Joel Corry):
- Cam Newton, quarterback (Panthers): $13MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed. Friday is also the deadline
for the Panthers to pick up Newton’s 2020 option for $10MM. - Eli Manning, quarterback (Giants): $17.5MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed.
- Jay Cutler, quarterback (Bears): $16MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed.
- Adrian Peterson, running back (Vikings): $7MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed.
- Julio Jones, wide receiver (Falcons): $11.5MM base salary for 2017 is now fully guaranteed.
- A.J. Green, wide receiver (Bengals): $6MM roster bonus is payable.
- Brandon Marshall, wide receiver (Jets): $9.5MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed.
- Mike Iupati, guard (Cardinals): $6.75MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed, as is $2MM of Iupati’s $8MM base salary for 2017.
- Rodney Hudson, center (Raiders): $7.35MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed.
- Gerald McCoy, defensive tackle (Buccaneers): $13.25MM base salary for 2017 is now fully guaranteed.
- Marcell Dareus, defensive tackle (Bills): $9.75MM base salary for 2017 is now fully guaranteed.
- Justin Houston, linebacker (Chiefs): $14.75MM of Houston’s $14.9MM base salary in 2016 is now fully guaranteed, as is $6.75MM of his $16.35MM base salary for 2017.
- DeAndre Levy, linebacker (Lions): $5.25MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed.
- Aqib Talib, cornerback (Broncos): $8.5MM base salary for 2016 is now fully guaranteed.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
NFC FA Rumors: Vikings, Cowboys, Long, Conte
Andre Smith is expected to visit the Vikings on Sunday, Darren Wolfson of KSTP tweets. The 38th-ranked player in PFR’s top 50 free agents list, Smith’s market has been slower to materialize than Mitchell Schwartz, the other top right tackle in this year’s class. The veteran right-edge player rated as Pro Football Focus’ No. 58 tackle last season and doesn’t have much left tackle experience.
The Vikings restructured the recently injury-prone Phil Loadholt‘s contract earlier this week, seemingly clearing up some of their uncertainty up front. But Loadholt’s sustained two season-ending injuries over the past two seasons and has just one year left on his contract, so it makes sense that Minnesota would have interest in adding some insurance.
Here’s more on free agents from around the NFC:
- Chris Long‘s previously-reported visit with the Cowboys is now expected to happen next week, writes David Moore of the Dallas Morning News. According to Moore, no firm date has been set yet, but Dallas has interest in the veteran defensive end.
- It’s a three-team race for free agent safety Chris Conte, according to Rand Getlin of the NFL Network, who tweets that the Buccaneers, Saints, and Giants are in the hunt. Having played for the Bucs last season, it sounds like Conte is drawing interest from his former team even though Lovie Smith is no longer the head coach — the safety played under Smith in Chicago as well.
- The Vikings aren’t looking to bring back linebacker Jason Trusnik, Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports (on Twitter). A 32-year-old edge player, Trusnik played in eight games for the Vikings last season and in order to continue his nine-year career, Trusnik, who started six games for the Dolphins in 2014, will have to search for a fifth NFL destination.
- Linebacker Terence Garvin will visit Washington, Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets. The Steelers backup sat behind the myriad ex-first-rounders in Pittsburgh, starting one game in three seasons. Garvin totaled 21 special teams tackles during his time with the Steelers. Washington recently lost Keenan Robinson to the Giants, creating a need for additional cogs on its second level.
- Previously reported to have visited Washington, Andre Branch has additional meetings lined up and won’t make his decision yet, John Keim of ESPN.com tweets.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Robert Ayers Signs With Buccaneers
4:20pm: Ayers’ deal looks to be worth slightly less than previously reported, with ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter reporting (via Twitter) that it’s a three-year, $19.5MM accord for the eighth-year defensive end that could get to $21MM. The Bucs officially announced the signing, according to the team’s website.
3:59pm: The second Giants defender to change teams in a matter of minutes, Robert Ayers joins Prince Amukamara in agreeing to spend the next part of his career in Florida. Ayers will sign with the Buccaneers, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network (on Twitter).
It’s a three-year, $21MM deal for Ayers, who will receive $10.5MM guaranteed.
Amukamara joined the Jaguars after the Giants signed his replacement, and Ayers will trek to Tampa Bay after Big Blue did the same at his position by bringing in Olivier Vernon on a historic accord.
A late-bloomer, Ayers continued his ascent that began late in his Broncos tenure by becoming a steady presence on the edge for the Giants. The former first-round pick is coming off his best pass-rushing season, recording nine sacks in his second contract season. The soon-to-be-31-year-old defensive end led the Giants as Jason Pierre-Paul, whom New York re-signed, encountered a career crisis stemming from a horrific hand injury.
Previously known for his strong run-defending acumen, Ayers’ improvement as a pass-rusher (Pro Football Focus tabbed him eighth among edge players last season) helped secure him a more lucrative contract than the pact he signed with the Giants in 2014. New York landed Ayers from Denver on a two-year, $3.75MM deal.
Ayers played in 12 games during each of the past two seasons, starting 11 in 2015, after signing a two-year deal with the Giants. He joins a Bucs front that has All-Pro Gerald McCoy inside and fourth-year player William Gholston on the edge.
The Bucs ranked 14th with 38 sacks last season.
Photo courtesy USA Today Sports Images
