Minor NFL Transactions: 3/14/22
It’s been a busy day around the NFL. We’ve compiled today’s minor moves below:
Denver Broncos
- To be signed: G Ben Braden
Detroit Lions
- Re-signed: LB Shaun Dion Hamilton
Houston Texans
- Re-signed: TE Antony Auclair
- Claimed (from Cowboys): CB Reggie Robinson
- Restructured: LB Kevin Pierre-Louis
Kansas City Chiefs
- Re-signed: FB Michael Burton
Los Angeles Rams
- Re-signed (two years): C/G Coleman Shelton
Tennessee Titans
- Re-signed: TE Geoff Swaim
Washington Commanders
- Re-signed: DB Troy Apke
Titans Re-Sign Ben Jones
The Titans’ offensive line has undergone plenty of changes in recent days, but there will be continuity in the middle of it. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the team is re-signing center Ben Jones to a two-year, $14MM deal (Twitter link).
This pact comes with $8MM guaranteed, Albert Breer of SI.com tweets, making Year 2 of the deal essentially an option year for the Titans. This will be Jones’ seventh season in Tennessee.
[RELATED: Titans To Sign Jamarco Jones]
Tennessee has recently moved on from two pieces to their offensive front. Last week they released Rodger Saffold along with Kendall Lamm. While it saved the team some notable cap space, it leaves question marks up front for one of the league’s most run-heavy offenses. Keeping Jones in the fold will certainly help in that regard.
Jones, who will be 33 by the start of the 2022 season, has been with the Titans since 2016. Durability has never been a concern over that time, as he has missed just one game in Nashville, and started each contest throughout his time there. PFF graded him as only allowing one sack all season in 2021, leading to an overall rating of 77.8. That is right on par with his previous performances, meaning he should still be counted on as a consistent presence along the line.
With Jones off the market, the center position continues to thin out. Ryan Jensen re-signed with the Buccaneers yesterday, leaving Bradley Bozeman as the name at the top of the list amongst free agents. Brian Allen represents another name that teams in need of a new center could be expected to pursue.
Titans To Sign Jamarco Jones
Former Seattle offensive lineman Jamarco Jones will sign a two-year, $5.75MM deal with the Titans (Twitter link via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com). The deal will also include $3.15MM guaranteed, marking a solid pay bump for the 25-year-old (26 in June).
Jones, a 2018 fifth-round pick, has been hampered by injuries throughout his young career. This year, he was limited to just ten games with a back issue, though he did make a couple starts in place of Damien Lewis at left guard. Still, he’s been productive while healthy. According to Pro Football Focus, he’s allowed just three sacks while on the field throughout his entire career.
Jones isn’t a world-beater, but he should a versatile piece of the puzzle for the Titans. Last year alone, he saw time at three different positions — right tackle, right guard, and left guard. In 2020, he played at every spot, save for center.
His exact role isn’t quite clear, but he’ll provide valuable support for an offensive line that will be without veteran Rodger Saffold.
QB Rumors: Trubisky, Winston, Taylor, Lock
The Giants’ new head coach, Brian Daboll, worked with free agent quarterback Mitchell Trubisky when they were both with the Bills last year (Daboll as offensive coordinator). Well, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN, Daboll has interest in luring Trubisky to join him in New York.
There’s been some interest in bringing Trubisky to Pittsburgh, as well, where a path to starting is much more clear. If Daboll’s familiarity with the sixth-year quarterback is able to attract him to the Giants, though, the head coach sees the potential for him to mirror the results of Ryan Tannehill in Tennessee. A quick refresher: Tannehill arrived in Nashville in 2019 in a trade with the Dolphins. Tannehill started the season in the role of back up quarterback to the incumbent starter Marcus Mariota. After a 2-4 start to the season, Mariota was benched in favor of Tannehill, who went 7-3 for the rest of the year and led the Titans to the AFC Championship Game.
Daboll holds hope that, while Daniel Jones may retain the starting job in New York, if the need presents itself, Trubisky could provide the same effect as Tannehill.
Some other notes concerning quarterbacks around the league:
- Another option the Steelers could be looking into, Jameis Winston is looking like the most likely starting quarterback for the Saints in 2022, according to Graziano. With Teddy Bridgewater headed to free agency, a return to New Orleans could be possible, and Winston may see some opportunities in testing the free agent market, himself. But Winston is a locker room favorite that saw success on the Saints before tearing his ACL midseason last year.
- Tyrod Taylor lost the starting job in Houston last year to rookie quarterback Davis Mills. With Mills expected to return to the starting position next year, the Texans do have interest in bringing Taylor back in the role of back up quarterback, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. Taylor has chased starting jobs throughout his career and has seen some success at times. He may search for a new opportunity to start, but, if not, Taylor has shown professionalism several times in back up roles mentoring young quarterbacks.
- After receiving Drew Lock in the Russell Wilson-trade with the Broncos, Seattle is considering the elements to Lock’s lack of success in Denver, according to Fowler. Some believe that the revolving door of offensive coordinators contributed to his struggles. Seattle is analyzing whether they believe in Pete Carroll‘s ability to develop Lock, who showed glimpses of promise in his early appearances as a Bronco, or whether they need to make moves for Deshaun Watson to win now.
Contract Details: Williams, Kirksey, Conley, Landry
Rounding up a few contract details from recent deals:
- Mike Williams, WR (Chargers): Three-year, $60MM. The contract has $40MM guaranteed, including a $21MM signing bonus, according to Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network. The third year of the contract, worth $17MM in not guaranteed for the 2024 season, when Williams will be due a $3MM roster bonus on the third day of the league year.
- Christian Kirksey, LB (Texans): Two-year, $10MM. The contract has a base value of $8MM with a $2MM signing bonus being part of the contract’s $4MM guaranteed amount, according to Wilson. Kirksey will earn approximately $58,823 per game as an active bonus for up to $1MM per year. The contract also holds annual incentives of $250,000 for each year of the contract.
- Chris Conley, WR (Texans): One-year, $2MM. The contract has a base salary of $1.5MM, $500,000 of which is guaranteed, along with a $250,000 signing bonus, according to Wilson. Conley’s contract also has a per game active bonus clause that can earn him up to $250,000 for the year as well as a $500,000 incentive that can be triggered off his 2022 catch and playing time totals.
- Harold Landry, OLB (Titans): Five-year, $87.5MM. The contract has a guaranteed amount of $52.5MM, composed of a $19MM signing bonus and the contract’s first three years of salary: $1.25MM for 2022, $15MM for 2023, and $17.25MM for 2024, according to Wilson. The 2024 amount is guaranteed for injury at signing, meaning that it won’t become guaranteed until the 5th day of the 2023 league year.
Titans, P Kern Rework Contract
With Titans’ punter Brett Kern heading into the final year of his contract, he’s agreed to terms with Tennessee to take about a $1MM pay cut, according to Field Yates of ESPN (Twitter). The longtime Titan was set to earn $3.2MM to complete a four-year, $12.65MM deal, but will now make $2.2MM for the 2022 NFL season. 
The 14-year veteran is Tennessee’s longest-tenured player and has spent all but one of his NFL seasons in Tennessee after signing as an undrafted free agent in Denver. There are only four punters older than Kern and only Sam Koch, Andy Lee, and Dustin Colquitt have been in the league longer.
The three-time Pro Bowler’s play has dipped a bit in recent years. Since it’s mostly a result of the team’s offensive ability and a more successful offense can lower the number of a punter’s opportunities, it can be hard to truly gauge a punter’s play. Still, Kern pinned the opposing team’s offense inside the 20-yard line only 18 times last year, his lowest season total since his rookie season as a Bronco. He also missed three games for the second consecutive year.
Kern’s initial salary of $3.2MM would’ve made him the highest paid punter in the 2022 season (before Jake Bailey‘s proven performance bonus). With the updated number down to $2.2MM, Kern ranks as the ninth-highest paid punter for the upcoming year. The extra $1MM for Tennessee will grant them a bit of wiggle room for cap spending.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/10/22
Today’s minor NFL transactions:
Buffalo Bills
- Re-signed: WR Jake Kumerow
Detroit Lions
- Re-signed: LB Rashod Berry, C Ryan McCollum
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: OL Brandon Murphy
New York Jets
- Re-signed: S Will Parks
San Francisco 49ers
- Re-signed: DL Kevin Givens, RB JaMycal Hasty, DL Maurice Hurst, OL Colton McKivitz
Tennessee Titans
- Re-signed: LS Morgan Cox
- Released: RB Darrynton Evans
Titans Release Rodger Saffold
The Titans are continuing to cut costs along the offensive line. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN, the team is releasing left guard Rodger Saffold (Twitter link). 
[RELATED: Titans To Release Kendall Lamm]
The 33-year-old had one year remaining on his contract, with a scheduled cap hit of $12.8MM. If he had still been on the roster five days after the beginning of free agency next week, he would have received a $1MM roster bonus. The move will incur $2.375MM in dead money, but save the Titans just over $10.4MM in cap room.
After nine years spent with the Rams, the former second rounder signed a four-year, $44MM deal to come to Nashville in 2019. He missed a total of three games in three campaigns with the Titans, and even earned his first career Pro Bowl nod in 2021. On the other hand, PFF assigned him an underwhelming grade of 68.8.
After letting go of Lamm and now Saffold, the Titans are back in the black with regard to the salary cap. They are presently listed as having $3.75MM in breathing space, which makes room to accommodate Harold Landry‘s new deal, but doesn’t leave much to find a replacement. Center Ben Jones is also set to become a free agent, so the team could very well be on the lookout for multiple new starters along the interior of the offensive line.
Despite his age, Saffold will now become one of the top LGs on the open market. Other big names at the position include Laken Tomlinson, Andrew Norwell and Quinton Spain. With a number of teams in need of at least shoort-term health on their offensive fronts, Saffold shouldn’t be out of work for very long.
Titans To Release Kendall Lamm
The Titans are releasing offensive tackle Kendall Lamm, according to Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network (Twitter link). Lamm had one more year to go on his contract, but the Titans opted for extra cap space instead.
[RELATED: Titans, Landry Agree On Extension]
Lamm joined the Titans on a two-year pact worth $8.5MM last spring. Up until that point, the undrafted free agent out of Appalachian State spent the first four seasons of his career with the Texans, followed by two years with the Browns. Lamm was limited to just four games during his first season in Cleveland, but he got into 15 games (one start) for the Browns in 2020, appearing on 116 offensive snaps and 68 special teams snaps.
His Titans run was spent mostly as a reserve with one start out of 12 appearances. All in all, the 29-year-old (30 in June) has 86 games on his resume and 28 starts.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/9/22
The deadline for teams to extend tender offers to their restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents looms next week. We’ll keep tabs on the latest here:
RFAs
Non-tendered:
- Cowboys: LB Luke Gifford
- Ravens: CB Chris Westry
- Titans: DE Derick Roberson
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Cardinals: RB Jonathan Ward, WR Antoine Wesley
- Lions: LS Scott Daly, P Jack Fox, CB Mark Gilbert, S JuJu Hughes, RB Godwin Igwebuike, WR Tom Kennedy, G Tommy Kraemer, OLB Jessie Lemonier, T Matt Nelson, K Riley Patterson, LB Anthony Pittman, CB Bobby Price, TE Brock Wright
- Raiders: TE Nick Bowers
- Ravens: C Trystan Colon-Castillo, QB Tyler Huntley, LS Nick Moore, S Geno Stone, LB Kristian Welch, RB Ty’Son Williams