Extra Points: Hardy, Randle, Jordan
NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith firmly believes there is precedent for getting Greg Hardy‘s suspension reduced, Charean Williams of the Star Telegram writes. “In the last three years, we’ve had the league overturned three times in [the Saints’] Bounty, [Adrian] Peterson and Ray Rice,” Smith said as he gears up to defend the Cowboys star. “To me, it’s never a question about whether I’m confident or not. We start with the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and if they continue to seek to impose penalties that are inconsistent with that agreement or inconsistent of the law of the case that has been developed under that agreement, this is what unions do. We fight that.” More from around the NFL..
- Cowboys running back Joseph Randle won’t face domestic violence charges for his incident in Wichita, according to Drew Davidson of the Star Telegram tweets. There was a “lack of evidence” cited by the DA’s office in the case. More from around the NFL..
- Dolphins defensive end Dion Jordan issued a statement through the NFLPA regarding his suspension. “I’m very disappointed that I will not be playing in the NFL in the 2015 season,” the statement read. “Because of past positive tests and my status in the drug program, the consequence of dilute (not positive) tests is severe. I deeply regret putting myself in this position, and I apologize to my teammates and the Dolphins organization. I will use the time away from playing to finish my college degree. I will stay in excellent physical shape and look forward to returning to the NFL as soon as possible. I’m deeply grateful to my family and friends for their continued support.”
- Before the Seahawks traded for tight end Jimmy Graham, they had trade discussions with the Bears about Martellus Bennett, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- Alex Boone, who held out last offseason for a new contract, will skip all of the 49ers‘ voluntary activities in the final year of his contract, a source close to the guard tells Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com. Boone, who will earn $3.4MM in 2015, has not taken part in the 49ers’ offseason program, and he was not on the field Tuesday and Wednesday for the start of the team’s voluntary three-day minicamp at the team’s practice facility.
- The Titans have gotten calls from multiple teams inquiring about what it will take to deal for the No. 2 overall pick, league sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- Meanwhile, one team executive tells Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) that the Titans have been asking for three first round picks to part with the No. 2 choice. The executive laughed hard when passing that info along, he adds.
Titans To Sign Hakeem Nicks
WEDNESDAY, 5:23pm: It’s a one-year, $1.4MM deal with $100K fully guaranteed, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Caplan (on Twitter).
FRIDAY, 12:46pm: It’s a one-year deal for Nicks, according to Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
12:04pm: Teams with interest in free agent wide receiver Hakeem Nicks have been informed that he’ll be signing with the Titans, reports Mike Garafolo of Fox Sports (Twitter link). Nicks had visited Tennessee to meet with the Titans earlier this month.
Nicks, 27, first reached unrestricted free agency in March 2014, and signed a modest one-year contract with the Colts after spending the first five seasons of his NFL career with the Giants. While fellow 2009 first-round wideout Jeremy Maclin parlayed a one-year, prove-it deal in 2014 into a huge, long-term contract, Nicks was unable to do the same in Indianapolis.
After receiving 100 or more targets in each of his previous four seasons in New York, Nicks saw a career-low 68 passes thrown his way in 2014, as Andrew Luck and the Colts relied more on T.Y. Hilton, Reggie Wayne, and Coby Fleener in the passing game. Nicks finished the season with 405 yards and three touchdowns on 38 receptions, and visited the 49ers before catching on with the Titans.
While Nicks has a pair of 1,000-yard seasons under his belt, his mediocre recent production suggests that his signing shouldn’t affect the Titans’ draft plans significantly. There has been some recent speculation that the Titans could draft a wideout in the first round, particularly if the team trades down. A roster lacking star power could particularly benefit from selecting a player like Amari Cooper or Kevin White.
Still, having added Nicks and Harry Douglas to go along with presumed starting receivers Kendall Wright and Justin Hunter, Tennessee probably has other positions more in need of fortification.
Browns Make Titans Offer For No. 2 Pick?
5:04pm: Browns GM Ray Farmer tells NFL Media’s Andrea Kremer that he spoke to Webster, but specific compensation for the No. 2 pick wasn’t discussed.
“Things remain fluid and you always have to listen,” Farmer said. “When you get needy, you get desperate. We aren’t either.”
11:59am: In his full report on the trade talks between the Browns and Titans, McManamon writes that the Browns’ offer to the Titans “includes” the team’s first-round picks, which implies there may be more to it. However, he adds that another source close to the Browns says there have been “no substantive talks” yet with the Titans.
Presumably, McManamon is confident in enough in his first source to believe that there’s something to the story — it sounds to me like the two sides have definitely discussed a potential deal, even if nothing is imminent at this point.
11:53am: In an effort to move up to land Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, the Browns have offered their two first-round picks – 12th and 19th overall – to the Titans for the No. 2 overall pick, according to Pat McManamon of ESPN.com (Twitter link). However, fellow ESPN.com reporter Paul Kuharsky (Twitter link) hears from a Titans source that the Browns have not made an offer for that second overall pick.
Throughout the draft process, the Browns have been viewed as a candidate to shake up the first round, since they hold two top-20 picks. However, it would be a surprise if the 12th and 19th overall picks were all it took to move up to No. 2 to snag Mariota, so even if the Browns have made those picks available for the Titans, I’d expect further discussions to take place.
Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net reported last week that the Titans had asked the Browns for their second-round pick in addition to the Nos. 12 and 19 selections, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it took a little more than that to sway Tennessee — John Middlekauff of 95.7 The Game tweeted today that the Titans would want both 2015 first-rounders, a 2015 second-rounder, and a 2016 first-rounder.
Additionally, Titans general manager Ruston Webster said yesterday that he has first-round grades on 16 or 17 players in this class, so that No. 19 selection may not appeal as strongly to Tennessee as it would to other clubs.
With the Eagles, Jets, and Chargers all still being linked to Mariota and the No. 2 pick as well, it would be a surprise if the Bucs moved the pick before they’re on the clock tomorrow night, even if there are currently offers on the table.
King’s Latest: Bucs, Mariota, Cowboys, Pats
Before answering readers’ questions in his weekly mailbag this week, Peter King of TheMMQB.com passed along a number of the latest draft rumors he’s hearing with the first round just one day away. Let’s dive in and round up the highlights….
- The Buccaneers have yet to receive a trade offer that “would come close” to making them decide to move down from No. 1.
- The Titans, Buccaneers, and Jaguars have all inquired with teams picking late in the first round about moving up from the second round, says King. The three teams have the first, second, and fourth picks, respectively, in round two.
- One GM told King that while the Titans still look like the favorites to end up with Marcus Mariota, he wouldn’t be shocked if Cleveland “trades the farm” to land the Oregon quarterback. The thinking is that Browns owner Jimmy Haslam is sick of the merry-go-round at the position, and would like to land a “squeaky-clean” signal-caller to lead the franchise.
- The Cowboys would love to see running back Melvin Gordon fall to them at No. 27, but two other names to watch are linebackers Eric Kendricks (UCLA) and Benardrick McKinney (Mississippi State).
- One team considering drafting a tackle in the first round is debating whether or not LSU’s La’el Collins will be on its draft board on Thursday night. While King acknowledges that this may be unfair, he explains the club’s thinking: “How can you draft a guy who’s being sought in connection with the death of a woman, even if police are saying now he isn’t a suspect? He needs to be exonerated by Thursday.”
- The Patriots like USC wide receiver Nelson Agholor, who looks like a logical target for the club if he’s still available at No. 32.
- With the 21st overall pick, the Bengals are considering Texas A&M tackle Cedric Ogbuehi, who had ACL surgery in January. King views this is a sign that teams are willing to wait on a prospect who wouldn’t be healthy enough to contribute immediately if they think he can be a premier player in the long term.
Draft Rumors: Collins, Bucs, Gurley, Titans
We heard yesterday that police are looking to question La’el Collins following the shooting death of a pregnant woman last week, though the LSU offensive lineman isn’t considered a suspect. Jim Boren, the attorney for Collins, tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com that he has been in constant contact with the lead detective in the case, and spoke to the district attorney yesterday.
“We took the investigation seriously,” Boren said on Tuesday. “We’ve tried to rule him out as a suspect. We’re going to provide that information to the police, and ultimately [Collins] will sit down and talk to them. But the timing is poor.”
Indeed, even if Collins is officially ruled out as a suspect by police, which appears likely, it’s not clear if that will happen before the draft gets underway tomorrow night, and teams figure to approach the lineman with extra caution.
As we wait to see how the ongoing investigation affects Collins, let’s round up a few more Wednesday draft rumors from around the league….
- According to Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht, trade inquiries involving the No. 1 overall pick are on the rise this week, tweets Ed Werder of ESPN.com. Still, I think Tampa Bay would have to be blown away to move out of that first overall spot.
- One team has Georgia running back Todd Gurley at No. 1 overall on its draft board, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, adding that it’s safe to say that’s not the consensus around the NFL. In fact, scouts who have spoken to Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report don’t believe Gurley will be a top-10 pick, as has been rumored.
- Within Freeman’s piece, the BR scribe notes that the Jets are still very much in the hunt for Marcus Mariota, though he’s skeptical that New York will offer enough to move the Titans out of the No. 2 spot.
- Speaking of those Titans, Jeff Darlington of the NFL Network (Twitter links) hears that Tennessee isn’t just taking trade calls — the club is making them as well. So far, things haven’t gotten serious, but trade talks involving that second overall pick could heat up today and tomorrow, says Darlington.
- Amidst reports that Shane Ray could slide out of the first round, and perhaps much further than that, one NFL executive tells Alex Marvez of Fox Sports (Twitter link) that the Missouri pass rusher “isn’t going to fall very far” following his citation for marijuana possession.
- Northwestern quarterback Trevor Siemian appears to be a popular target, according to Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post, who writes that Siemian has received calls from 11 teams in the past two days. Those teams are the Broncos, Jets, Jaguars, Raiders, Vikings, Packers, Browns, Bills, Seahawks, Rams, and Dolphins.
Titans Notes: Draft, Mettenberger, Lewan
Here’s the latest on the Titans, who hold the No. 2 overall pick in this week’s draft..
- Titans GM Ruston Webster said he’s getting calls about the No.2 pick, though none of the talks are serious right now, Jim Wyatt of The Tennesseean tweets. The GM explained (link) that he likes the No. 2 spot and, like many execs, isn’t wowed by the depth of the first round. He feels that there are about 16 or 17 players who are really worthy of being deemed first-round talent.
- The GM says that he won’t trade Zach Mettenberger even if they draft a quarterback in the first round, Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com (on Twitter). He later said that if you think a player is a franchise quarterback, it supersedes everything else (link via Wyatt). If Webster is sold on whichever quarterback falls to him at No. 2, it sounds like he’ll happily stand pat and pull the trigger.
- Webster said he’s excited about the 33rd overall pick and there could be action there too, Wyatt tweets.
- Webster says he’d like to come out of this draft with a right tackle to complement Taylor Lewan long-term, according to John Glennon of The Tennessean (on Twitter). This draft doesn’t necessarily boast a lot of great tackles, so it might be a challenge for him to find that.
- Even though he feels that the Titans have improved depth at wide receiver with the additions of Harry Douglas and Hakeem Nicks, Webster says he might still grab a WR in the draft, McCormick tweets.
Titans Pick Up Kendall Wright’s Option
APRIL 28: The Titans have officially exercised Wright’s option, GM Ruston Webster confirmed today (Twitter link via Wyatt).
APRIL 23: While they don’t have to formally make the call for another week and a half, the Titans are expected to pick up the fifth-year option for wide receiver Kendall Wright, according to Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. The team will have until May 3 to make the decision official.
Wright, 25, grabbed a career-low 57 balls last season, though a career-high six of those receptions went for touchdowns. During the 2013 season, Wright developed a strong rapport with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, en route to a 94-catch, 1,079-yard campaign. However, the Titans shuttled through quarterbacks last season, with Jake Locker, Charlie Whitehurst, and Zach Mettenberger all receiving at least five starts, and Wright’s production suffered.
While Wright could be catching passes from Mettenberger again in 2015, there’s also a chance the Titans use their second overall pick on a quarterback like Marcus Mariota, so it remains to be seen if the club will have some continuity at the position. Either way, Wright, Justin Hunter, and free agent signee Harry Douglas are expected to anchor the receiving corps.
As the 20th overall pick in the 2012 draft, Wright will be in line for a 2016 salary worth $7.32MM if the Titans elect to exercise his fifth-year option. That salary will be guaranteed for injury only until the start of the ’16 league year — at that point, if Wright remains under contract, his salary would become fully guaranteed.
Philip Rivers/Titans Rumors: Monday
As recently as Saturday, Peter King of TheMMQB.com suggested that there was something to the Philip Rivers-to-the-Titans rumors, but his latest Monday Morning Quarterback column throws a bit of cold water on that idea. Here’s the latest on Rivers, the Chargers, the Titans, and the No. 2 overall pick:
- As of now, the Chargers have yet to have conversations with any team regarding a trade of Rivers, Alex Flanagan of NBC Sports tweets.
- After making many calls over the weekend, King doesn’t believe the Chargers will trade Rivers. While he’s not ready to lock that in, he writes that San Diego “definitely does not want to trade Rivers.” Additionally, the Titans would want more than just Rivers for the second overall pick, and the Chargers probably wouldn’t be willing to offer more than that.
- If the Titans don’t get a good offer for that No. 2 pick from the Chargers or another team, they’ll likely select Mariota, writes King, adding that while “they feel good about Zach Mettenberger, [they] would feel better about Mariota.
- An Oregon source tells King that no team scouted Mariota more fervently during and after the college football season than the Titans.
- According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, the Browns, Rams, and Chargers are the most likely candidates to make a deal with the Titans. However, Rapoport agrees that San Diego doesn’t appear to be interested in dealing Rivers, who would have to sign a contract extension and take a physical to finalize a trade — neither of those things is in motion at this point.
- Rapoport adds that the Browns and Rams may find it more difficult to match up with the Titans, since neither team could send Tennessee an established quarterback like Rivers in a trade.
South Notes: Bucs, Winston, Saints, Colts
Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston is expected to selected first overall by Tampa Bay on Thursday night, and the Buccaneers have certainly done their research on the 2013 Heisman winner. General manager Jason Licht tells Joey Johnston and Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune that his club spoke with more than 75 people in an attempt to properly vet Winston. Curiously, the Bucs did not speak with the woman who accused Winston of sexual assault in 2013, but they did talk to a member of the Tallahassee State Attorney’s Office, which declined to press charges against Winston.
Here’s more from the NFL’s South divisions…
- Of the 18 prospects who are known to have visited the Saints, 12 are defensive players, which could be an indication of which direction New Orleans is leaning with its two first-round picks, writes Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com. Of course, as Woodbery adds, each club is allotted 30 predraft visits, so there up to 12 Saints player meetings that the public isn’t aware of.
- Speaking of the Saints, Mike Triplett of ESPN.com doesn’t think the club will take a risk on players with off-the-field trouble, such as edge rusher Randy Gregory or receiver Dorial Green-Beckham.
- The Colts will likely have to trade up if they want a chance at a player like Alabama safety Landon Collins, according to Mike Wells of ESPN.com. Indianapolis owns nine picks, so they could have the draft capital to make such a move.
- Although a poor draft (and a similarly underwhelming 2015 season) would probably threaten the job of Titans GM Ruston Webster more than head coach Ken Whisenhunt, Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com thinks both could be in jeopardy if Tennessee struggles this year.
Sunday Roundup: Draft, Weddle, J. Houston
Let’s take a look at some notes from around the league on this Sunday afternoon, including one note on the first overall pick in Thursday’s first round:
- Multiple teams have reached out to the Buccaneers recently to determine what it would take to move up to the No. 1 overall pick, according to Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). However, Getlin adds in a second tweet that although the Bucs have listened, no offer has been strong enough for the team to seriously consider trading down just yet.
- Similarly, Conor Orr of NFL.com writes that Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie has fielded calls on Oakland’s No. 4 overall selection.
- In a separate piece, Orr writes that the Chiefs are keeping the lines of communication open with star outside linebacker Justin Houston, who was slapped with the franchise tag in March. Kansas City has a little under three months to work out a long-term deal with Houston, and the fact that talks are still ongoing and are still progressing is a good sign that something will get done.
- Paola Boivin of The Arizona Republic believes Wisconsin RB Melvin Gordon would be the perfect first-round choice for the Cardinals, who hold the No. 24 overall pick.
- Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post feels the Broncos should take an offensive tackle in the first round, even if they have to trade up a couple of spots to do it. Renck goes on to examine some of the prospects that could be available when Denver is on the board.
- Chargers safety Eric Weddle feels “highly disrespected” by the team’s refusal to engage in contract talks despite his desire to retire with the organization, but Matt Calkins of U-T San Diego believes the Chargers are taking the right approach.
- Given that the Jaguars feel better about their roster than they have in the past two seasons, Ryan O’Halloran of The Florida Times-Union would not be surprised if the team traded a couple of picks to move into the back of round 1 or up in rounds 2-3.
- Continuing a theme among NFL beat writers, Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean looks at the offensive side of the Titans‘ roster heading into the draft and offers his predictions as to what the team will do to address its deficiencies on that side of the ball during draft weekend.
- Washington GM Scot McCloughan‘s history suggests he will select an edge rusher with his top pick in this year’s draft, writes Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com. Although Tandler says Randy Gregory‘s red flags will probably keep him off McCloughan’s board, Vic Beasley and Dante Fowler, Jr. would both be good bets.