AFC Notes: Raiders, Titans, Ravens, Browns
While the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority initially appeared poised to reject an agreement that would have extended the stay of MLB’s Athletics in the O.co Coliseum another 10 years, the two sides have reached a last-minute agreement, according to Carolyn Jones of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). After Athletics co-owner Lew Wolff suggested that MLB commissioner Bud Selig had given the franchise the go-ahead to “seek a temporary or permanent location outside the city of Oakland,” city and county officials immediately restarted negotiations and were motivated to work out a deal.
For the Raiders, that’s not great news, since the NFL team doesn’t want to share a stadium with Oakland’s baseball team for the long term, and with the A’s remaining at O.co, that leaves one less spot where the Raiders could build a new stadium. As we wait to see what effect the new deal could have on the Raiders, let’s check in on a few more items from around the AFC….
- As ESPN.com’s team of beat writers lays out burning questions for each of the league’s 32 clubs, the theme in the AFC East is front office personnel and philosophies. Among the topics discussed: Whether the Bills have an offensive identity crisis; the relationship between the Jets‘ coach, GM, and owner; and a possible staff overhaul in Miami if the Dolphins miss the postseason again.
- Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com explores what the Titans might do with the $25MM in cap space they’re currently carrying.
- Within ESPN.com’s story on the AFC West, Jeff Legwold discusses whether the Broncos‘ have mortgaged their future by trying to win immediately, while Paul Gutierrez addresses how many games Dennis Allen will have to win in 2014 to keep his job as the Raiders‘ head coach.
- ESPN.com’s Jamison Hensley wonders if the Ravens did enough this offseason to improve their offensive line.
- Second-year offensive lineman Garrett Gilkey is a dark horse candidate to crack the Browns‘ starting lineup this year, says Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal.
Titans Links: Locker, Battle, Walker
Jake Locker finds himself on the hot seat in Tennessee entering the final year of his rookie contract, with the team declining to exercise his fifth-year option as a former first-round pick. Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com points out four ways Locker can turn around his career. While he highlights external factors, such as health, coaching, and having a strong running game and defense, he acknowledges that it might not be enough if Locker does not progress.
Here are some other links from around Titans camp:
- The Titans are working to improve Locker’s ability as a pocket passer, writes David Climer of the Tennessean. New head coach Ken Whisenhunt has made it a point to fit Locker into his system, not the other way around.
- Running back Jackie Battle is proving to be a versatile weapon, taking snaps at fullback this offseason, reports Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean. “I just pick a hole and hit the first body that’s in there,’‘ said Battle. “There will a lot more contact, more collisions, but that’s the kind of back I am. I have been a physical back throughout my career.”
- Versatile tight end Delanie Walker believes he can be one of the most productive at the position in 2014, writes Joe Fann of TitansOnline.com. “I’ve got to get better,” said Walker. “I’m looking to catch 80 balls this year.” Only two active tight ends caught that many passes last season, and one of them would argue he is a wide receiver.
- While Antonio Andrews, Tyler Wilson, Collin Mooney, Tommie Campbell, and Colin McCarthy may not make the 53-man roster, Chad Minton of Bleacher Report believes all five will have a great shot to make the practice squad this August.
- The team did not have any players on ESPN’s top ten overpaid or underpaid NFL players, but Kuharsky highlights some of the roster’s most inflated contracts. He also points out that Jurrell Casey and Kendall Wright could have been in the mix for the underpaid list.
- Even though the Titans are noticeably absent or poorly ranked on most team and individual lists compiled this offseason, Kuharsky has compiled a few lists in which notable players do appear, and writes that they may have players that are not too far away.
Latest On Four Remaining Unsigned Draftees
As we’ve discussed before when covering draft pick signings – as well as those draftees who remain unsigned – the NFL’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement has taken most of the drama out of the contracts for rookies. With set amounts on signing bonuses and total values for most rookie deals, players will haggle over things like offset language, types of payment, and guaranteed money, but for the most part, there isn’t much wiggle room.
That means that we shouldn’t expect to see many – if any – holdouts when training camps get underway later this month. Still, four of 2014’s 256 draft picks have still yet to ink their contracts, so it’s worth checking in on them to see if we can discern any particular reason why that’s the case. Here are the four draftees who remain unsigned, along with the latest updates on each of them:
- Justin Gilbert, CB, Cleveland Browns (1.8): As of last Tuesday, Gilbert didn’t sound like he was too involved in his own negotiations, deferring to his agent when asked about contract talks by Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. He echoed that stance later in the week, suggesting that he wasn’t sure whether he’d be in attendance when the Browns’ training camp begins. Still, even with potential disputes over offsets and roster bonuses in play at the No. 8 spot, I’d be pretty surprised if the rookie cornerback wasn’t present for the first day of camp.
- Taylor Lewan, OT, Tennessee Titans (1.11): Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk wrote this week that he thinks the delay on Lewan may be a result of the offensive tackle looking to replace his fully-guaranteed base salaries with roster bonuses paid out during training camp. Last year’s 11th overall pick (D.J. Fluker) didn’t receive these bonuses in his deal, but Lewan’s teammate, No. 10 pick Chance Warmack, did get them. Considering Lewan is viewed as the Titans’ left tackle of the future, making him a more essential piece on the offensive line than Warmack, he has a reasonable case for those roster bonuses. In Florio’s view, a brief training camp holdout is a possibility for Lewan.
- Marqise Lee, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars (2.39): Lee was long viewed as a likely first-round pick, so the delay on his signing may be related to his trying to recoup some guaranteed money after slipping to No. 39. In his latest mailbag, John Oesher of Jaguars.com couldn’t offer any specific details on the holdup for Lee, but stated confidently that something should get done before training camp.
- Billy Turner, OT, Miami Dolphins (3.67): There haven’t been many rumblings about the contract talks, who is the last third-rounder to sign. Most recently, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald wrote last Monday that the unresolved issues for Turner “are not insurmountable.”
AFC Links: Pitta, Bills, Ward, Titans
Tight end Dennis Pitta reached a five-year contract agreement with the Ravens back in March, but had been considering filing a grievance if the team franchised him, says Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. Like Jimmy Graham, Pitta spent most of his snaps last season playing in the slot or split out wide, rather than on the offensive line. Based on today’s ruling, which went against Graham, Pitta was likely fortunate to avoid such a dispute, since he lined up in the slot for the majority of his snaps, and arbitrator Stephen Burbank determined that Graham was playing tight end in instances when he lined up within four yards of offensive linemen.
Here’s more from around the AFC:
- Terry and Kim Pegula have hired Steve Greenberg, managing director of elite investment bank Allen & Company, to represent them as they pursue a potential purchase of the Bills, reports Tim Graham of the Buffalo News. The current Buffalo Sabres owners are among a number of likely bidders with interest in buying the franchise.
- Having moved to Cleveland to Denver in the offseason, new Broncos safety T.J. Ward has noticed a difference between the two teams, as he tells David DeChant of DenverBroncos.com. “Nothing against Cleveland but this is a winning culture,” Ward said. Of his goals this season, the ex-Brown added: “We’re just expecting to win. That’s it. That’s the only expectation.”
- After spending the first six years of his NFL career in Denver, linebacker Wesley Woodyard joined the Titans on a four-year contract this offseason, and he likes what he sees in Tennessee so far, writes Jim Wyatt of the Tennesseean.
- Longtime Steelers linebacker Joey Porter will work this season in Pittsburgh as a defensive assistant, and former teammate Larry Foote tells ESPN.com’s Scott Brown that he fully expects Porter to become an NFL head coach eventually.
Titans Notes: Preston, Lewan, Mettenberger
The Titans are set atop their receiver depth chart with Nate Washington, Kendall Wright and Justin Hunter. There is a spot up for grabs behind the trio, and Lauren Moore of The Tennessean writes that second-year player Michael Preston is looking like the favorite. Receiver coach Shawn Jefferson gushed about the 25-year-old:
“He is my jack of all trades,” Jefferson said. “He knows all the positions. I can plug him in anywhere, he hustles, blocks, and is a great teammate.
“He has a great chance, but there is a lot of competition at this position. Right now, I’m not making any predictions, but as a coach I can’t live without him. That’s how much he means to me as a player and a person.”
The competition for the spot isn’t easy. Among the candidates are veterans Brian Robiskie, Derek Hagan, Dorin Dickerson and Marc Mariani. 2013 undrafted free agent Rico Richardson is in the mix, as well as a handful of 2014 undrafted free agents.
Here are some more notes from the Volunteer State…
- The holdup over first-round pick Taylor Lewan‘s contract is likely regarding roster bonuses, writes ProFootballTalk.com’s Mike Florio. The offensive tackle could be looking to replace his fully-guaranteed base salaries with roster bonuses paid out during training camp. As Florio points out, this is similar to what happened with the team’s first-round pick in 2013, Chance Warmack. Warmack ended up receiving the type of contract that Lewan is seeking.
- Among the team’s expiring contracts, Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean suggests that the Titans should negotiate extensions with defensive lineman Jurrell Casey and punter Brett Kern. The writer wanted to see more from quarterback Jake Locker, linebacker Akeem Ayers, defensive lineman Derrick Morgan and offensive tackle Michael Roos before extending their contracts.
- Rookie quarterback Zach Mettenberger is making it his goal to be the starter “from day one,” he said on SiriusXM NFL Radio (via Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com). “I’m going to make Jake work that much harder…cause I’m coming everyday. And I’m bringing my best effort and my hardest work to the facility everyday to show that I should be the guy playing.” Mettenberger clarified that he isn’t trying to start a quarterback controversy, claiming that “any guy worth his salt” would have the same approach.
Titans Notes: Lewan, Hunter, Thompson
Titans rookie first-rounder Taylor Lewan remains unsigned, but that didn’t prevent the team from training him at both left and right tackle, writes John Glennon in the Tennessean.
Here’s a few more Titans tidbits provided by offensive coordinator Jason Michael, who did an interview for the team website:
- Talented but raw second-year receiver Justin Hunter has shown flashes of playmaking, and “the sky’s the limit” for him, but the staff needs to continue pushing him.
- Veteran Shonn Greene (injury) and rookie Bishop Sankey (academic requirements) missed most of the team’s offseason, opening the door for Dexter McCluster to learn the system.
- Another player who must make strides is Taylor Thompson, whose transition from college defensive end to NFL tight end has not gone smoothly. Michael did not call out Thompson, but did stop short of praising him, saying, “He’s still young to the position, with changing from defensive end, and I know we’ve talked about those things and at some point, he’s got to put that behind him and move forward and be a tight end…”
- However, unlike Hunter, a 2013 second-rounder who scored four touchdowns and averaged nearly 20 yards per catch as a rookie, Thompson enters his third pro season with just nine catches to his credit. In a recent Daily News Journal article, Thompson admitted to enduring growing pains and a steep learning curve. Additionally, first-year position coach Mike Mularkey said his first impression of Thompson is that he’s raw and inexperienced. Thompson, whom the Titans traded up for in the fifth round of the 2012 draft, has two years remaining on his rookie contract, but the team is hoping for signs of development. He’s expected to be the team’s No. 3 tight end, but at 6-6 and nearly 270 pounds with sub-4.6 speed and natural catching ability, Thompson has breakout potential if the light comes on.
Extra Points: OTAs, Packers, Titans, Brady
Minicamps are finished. The 2014 NFL season awaits.
Players have left their respective clubs until the opening of training camp, and as ESPN.com’s John Clayton notes, coaches now will cross their fingers that they don’t receive the 3 a.m. phone call alerting them of the star player’s transgressions.
Clayton, the Worldwide Leader’s senior NFL writer, outlines seven things learned from the offseason programs, with No. 1 being the lack of readiness for rookie quarterbacks. Reading into Clayton’s words, he believes that no rookie quarterback will open the season as the team’s starting signal caller. Teddy Bridgewater is the most pro-ready, Clayton says, but Matt Cassel will get the first snap on opening day.
Taking a page out of Pete Carroll‘s playbook, Clayton writes that teams around the league are gravitating toward taller defensive backs. Case in point, the Kansas City Chiefs, who released 5-foot-9 cornerback Brandon Flowers in a cap-saving move. They’ll look to replace Flowers with 6-foot-1 Phillip Gaines, 6-foot-2 Marcus Cooper and 6-foot David Van Dyke, each of whom are first- or second-year players.
Other news and notes from around the league…
- Among the 10 Packers stories to watch before training camp opens by Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is peace of mind at backup quarterback. It wasn’t pretty for the Pack at QB when Aaron Rodgers went down in a Week 9 loss to the Bears, but coach Mike McCarthy should feel better about this year’s situation with Matt Flynn and Scott Tolzien backing up the All Pro, Dunne writes.
- Quarterback Jake Locker, receiver Kendall Wright and the defense’s front seven are all things Titans fans should feel good about, The Tennessean’s Jim Wyatt writes. Locker should be at 100% coming off foot surgery in November and had started the 2013 season with a bang, while Wright will team with Nate Washington and Justin Hunter to ease Locker’s return to health.
- Tom Brady‘s private quarterback coach, Tom House, admitted in an interview with SiriusXM radio that the three-time Super Bowl champion has struggled as of late to connect on the deep passes. “As he’s getting a little older you lose a little strength, you lose a little flexibility,” House said. “And what was happening was he was noticing that his accuracy and his long ball weren’t what they were three or four years ago. So we ran him through the computer, compared him to the models we have created for movement efficiency, and there were really, really small things that were causing his issues.”
Extra Points: Winston, Flowers, CJ2K, 49ers
Jameis Winston‘s father, Antonor Winston, believes his son plans to play two more seasons at Florida State, writes Jeff Sentell of The Birmingham News. The quarterback is slated to graduate in December of 2015 but if he jumps early, he’ll likely find himself as a top 10 pick in next year’s draft. Winston is also a promising baseball prospect and has been projected by some to be a first round pick in the 2015 MLB Draft. Tonight’s glance around the NFL..
- Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune (via Twitter) heard this morning from a league source that free agent cornerback Brandon Flowers is not expected to visit the Vikings. Flowers, who was cut loose by the Chiefs last week, is visiting with the Chargers before potentially taking visits elsewhere, but it sounds like Minnesota is not on the docket.
- Jets tailback Chris Johnson is upset with the Titans for cutting him so late in the offseason and former NFLPA president Kevin Mawae is on his side. “I’ve got to give some credit to Chris,” Mawae said on 102.5 The Game, according to Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com. “There are some times when the business side of it is done wrong and if the team knew they were gonna cut him or whatever, then I’m in agreement with Chris that they should have done it earlier. There’s no sour grapes about it. You just don’t do business that way, is what I think Chris is trying to say and I would agree with that.”
- Tight end Vernon Davis and guard Alex Boone want new contracts from the 49ers and are holding out from practice until they get them. Unfortunately for them, as Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com explains, the club has a history of not caving into such holdouts. San Francisco set an important precedent in 2011 with running back Frank Gore and it’s hard to see them going against that now with Davis and Boone.
- Although some have hammered Colin Kaepernick for signing a team-friendly deal with the 49ers, he says the contract is an all-around win, writes Lindsay H. Jones of USA Today Sports. “You can skew things anyway you want,” Kaepernick said. “At the end of the day, a lot of the way the contract is set up is the way every other quarterback’s contract is set up. The things that aren’t set up like those contracts are because we wanted them that way, so we could sign other players.“
- Brandon Pettigrew has been a scapegoat for the Lions‘ struggles during his five years in Detroit, but he says he didn’t let that cloud his judgement before deciding to re-sign with the club, writes Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. This season, Pettigrew will share playing time with first-round pick Eric Ebron and second-year pro Joseph Fauria.
Titans To Sign Dorin Dickerson
The Titans are in the process of making a change to their 90-man roster, having cut tight end David Wright, according to Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com (via Twitter). In place of Wright, who was signed last month as an undrafted free agent, the Titans will sign veteran tight end Dorin Dickerson.
Dickerson, 26, was a seventh-round pick by the Texans in 2010, and has spent time with Houston, New England, Buffalo, and Detroit since then. The Lions opted not to tender Dickerson a contract offer in March, making him an unrestricted free agent. The Pittsburgh product, who has 11 career receptions for 151 yards, auditioned for the Titans at their minicamp this week, and seemingly made a strong enough impression to earn a chance to compete for a roster spot in training camp.
The latest set of transactions may not be the last of the Titans’ maneuverings this summer, according to coach Ken Whisenhunt, who said today that moves may still be made before training camp begins (Twitter link).
Minor Moves: Bengals, Raiders, Bears, Bucs
Tonight’s minor moves..
- The Bengals announced (via Twitter) that they have released Mississippi halfback Jeff Scott.
- The Raiders claimed tackle Emmett Cleary off waivers from the Buccaneers, tweets Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- Safety Sean Cattouse (Bears), Steven Jenkins (Buccaneers), Lamont Bryant (Titans), Aaron Mellette (Ravens), and Adrian Hamilton (Ravens) all went unclaimed, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links).
- The Texans signed former North Carolina defensive tackle Tim Jackson, Wilson tweets.
- Texans cut tight end Chris Coyle and waived-injured defensive lineman Sullivan Grosz, Wilson tweets. Both Coyle, an Arizona State product, and Grosz, out of Cal Poly, were signed as undrafted free agents back in May.
- The Raiders cut David Gilreath, according to Wilson (on Twitter). The former Wisconsin wideout hooked on with Oakland earlier this month.
- The Cowboys removed former Illinois State tight end Evan Wilson from injured reserve with an injury settlement, Wilson tweets. The UDFA signed with Dallas in May and received a $2.5K signing bonus.