Panthers Release DE Chris Smith
In addition to releasing kicker Graham Gano, the Panthers parted ways with another vested veteran Thursday. They cut defensive end Chris Smith, David Newton of ESPN.com notes.
The Panthers signed Smith as a street free agent just before the new league year began. A six-year veteran, Smith signed a one-year deal with Carolina in March. He has played for the Jaguars, Bengals and Browns in a six-year career.
Smith’s two-year Cleveland tenure involved a tragedy; his girlfriend was killed in a traffic accident in September 2019. Smith played nine games for the Browns last season. He started two for Cleveland in 2018 but worked as a depth piece for the Jaguars and Bengals. He visited both the Bengals and Panthers in March.
Teams are gradually moving their rosters from the 90-man limit to 80 players, which will be the most teams can carry when on-field work begins August 16. While most teams have opted to cut less experienced players, the Panthers chose to jettison two more veterans during a year in which the team parted ways with numerous high-profile players.
Panthers Release K Graham Gano
The Panthers have released Graham Gano, according to a social media post from his wife (Twitter link via Joe Person of The Athletic). The veteran kicker was slated to make $3MM this year. 
Joey Slye, meanwhile, is under contract for just $675K. It’s a cost-cutting maneuver for Carolina, though the team will be left with even more dead money on the books. The Panthers have saved $2.8MM while taking on a leftover $1.5MM charge, to be dispersed over the next two years. All in all, the Panthers overhaul has saddled them with nearly $43MM in dead money in 2020.
Gano was tremendous in his last full season in 2017, sinking 29 of his 30 field goal tries for a league-leading 96.7% conversion rate. That performance earned him the first Pro Bowl bid of his career, and it also helped him secure a four-year, $17MM deal. Before his release, Gano had the fifth-highest AAV ($4.25MM) of any kicker in the NFL.
Now, the job belongs to Slye. Known for his strong leg, Slye nailed 78.1% of his kicks in 2019, with an 8-of-11 success rate from 50+ yards. He also missed four extra point tries, but the Panthers seem to think that he’ll tamp that number down moving forward.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/29/20
Teams continue to make moves as players report to training camps, with many opting to pare their rosters from 90 to 80 players well before the mid-August deadline. Here are Wednesday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Re-signed: G Parker Ehinger
Chicago Bears
- Waived/injured: CB Tre Roberson
Cincinnati Bengals
- Waived/injured: DT Ryan Glasgow
Cleveland Browns
- Waived/injured: DE Trevon Young
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Claimed off waivers (from Bills) OL Garrett McGhin
Kansas City Chiefs
- Waived: OL Jovahn Fair, DT Braxton Hoyett, DB Jalen Julius, FB/TE John Lovett, P Tyler Newsome, LB Bryan Wright
Miami Dolphins
- Claimed off waivers (from 49ers): DT Ray Smith
- Waived: CB Ryan Lewis
New York Jets
- Placed on reserve/retired list: RB Jalin Moore
Chargers Sign Joey Bosa To Five-Year, $135MM Deal
It’s officially official. On Tuesday night, the Chargers announced their brand new deal with Joey Bosa to keep him under contract for the next six seasons. The five-year add-on will pay the defensive end $135MM, including $78MM guaranteed at signing and $102MM in overall guarantees, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. 
Bosa’s deal is an absolute record smasher. His full guarantees and overall guarantees are the highest of any defensive player in NFL history. On the whole, it’s the largest contract the Chargers have ever given to a player in the history of their franchise. Before the Bosa extension, no Chargers player had reached $100MM.
It’s even more of a jaw-dropper when considering the current economic climate and the possibility of a sharply reduced cap in 2021. Still, as GM Tom Telesco has pointed out, the Chargers have more flexibility for next year’s books than most teams. The deal is an outlier for this offseason, but not an anomaly. Just a couple weeks ago, Browns defensive end Myles Garrett signed five-year, $125MM deal with $100MM in total guarantees.
Bosa’s deal has leapfrogged Garrett, Bears outside linebacker Khalil Mack, and Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald in every category. Previously, Mack was the financial kingpin of the defensive end group with Mack $23.5MM per year, followed by DeMarcus Lawrence of the Cowboys ($21MM/year) and Frank Clark of the Chiefs ($20.8MM/year).
In his first two pro seasons, Bosa racked up a combined 23 sacks and 111 tackles. In 2019, Bosa missed the bulk of the season with a bone bruise, but still managed 5.5 sacks and 23 tackles in seven games. Last year, he turned in a complete 16-game season, and he met every lofty expectation – 11.5 sacks, 67 stops, and a forced fumble en route to his second career Pro Bowl nod.
Minor NFL Transactions: 7/28/20
Here are Tuesday’s minor moves, with the list being updated throughout the afternoon. With teams having until August 16 to cut their rosters from 90 to 80 players, many are doing so before on-field camp work begins.
Carolina Panthers
- Claimed off waivers (from Patriots): LB Kyahva Tezino
- Waived: OL Juwann Bushell-Beatty
Dallas Cowboys
- Waived: RB Jordan Chunn, DT Garrett Marino
Denver Broncos
- Waived/NFI: WR Zimari Manning
Houston Texans
- Waived: LB Jamir Jones, LS Anthony Kukwa, QB Nick Tiano
Indianapolis Colts
- Waived: TE Matt Lengel
Las Vegas Raiders
- Claimed off waivers (from Seahawks): G Jordan Roos
- Waived: DE Ade Aruna
New York Giants
- Claimed off waivers (from Broncos): DB Shakial Taylor
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: LB Joey Alfieri, CB Jermaine Kelly, S Derrick Kindred, QB Broc Rutter, OL Ray Smith
- Waived/NFI: WR Chris Finke
- Waived/non-football illness: Willie Henry
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Waived/NFI: LB Kendell Beckwith (as of Sept. 2019, the former starter was not planning to play again)
Washington Football Team
- Signed: OL Kevin Pamphile, LB Donald Payne
Bengals, Joe Burrow Agree To Deal
At long last, the Bengals have reached agreement with No. 1 overall pick Joe Burrow on his rookie deal (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter). Per the terms of his slot, the LSU quarterback will receive $36.1MM over the course of four years, including a $23.88MM signing bonus. 
Like the league’s other 31 clubs, the Bengals were skittish about forking over millions of dollars in the midst of economic uncertainty. Ultimately, Burrow got the payout structure he wanted – he’ll get 100% of his signing bonus within 15 days of the contract being executed, per Schefter. The deal will be formally signed later this week, after Burrow takes his physical.
Burrow joined Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield as consecutive Heisman winners to be drafted No. 1 overall. The Bengals’ Burrow infatuation was the league’s worst-kept secret. After a 2-14 finish to the 2019 season, they’re hoping that Burrow will help right the ship and put them in contention in the not-too-distant future.
An Ohio native, Burrow posted arguably the greatest quarterback season in the history of college football in 2019, completing 76.3% of his passes for 60 touchdowns. That TD total is an NCAA record, and he did it while throwing only six picks. Fresh off of a National Championship, the LSU star is now weeks away from his pro debut.
Vikings’ Michael Pierce Opts Out
Vikings nose tackle Michael Pierce is opting out of the 2020 season, according to Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). the Vikings signed Pierce in March to shore up their defensive front – without him, they’re left thin on the interior with weeks to go before the start of the season. 
Pierce inked a three-year, $27MM deal to help replace Linval Joseph, following his departure to the Chargers. The 6-foot, 340-pound defensive lineman was slated to start, but he’ll sit out the year after assessing the risk. Pierce has a history of respiratory trouble, meaning that the coronavirus could put him in serious jeopardy.
In 2019, with the Ravens, Pierce logged 35 tackles (two for loss) in 14 starts. Previous to that, Pierce graded as one of the top interior defenders in football in 2017 and ’18, per Pro Football Focus, before dipping to a middle-of-the-pack spot in his contract year.
Pierce is just the latest NFL notable to opt out of the upcoming season. The full and ever-growing list can be found here, on PFR’s 2020 NFL Opt Out Tracker.
Steelers Sign RB Wendell Smallwood
The Steelers have signed running back Wendell Smallwood, per a club announcement. Smallwood, at the time of this writing, is the seventh running back on the club’s roster.
Amidst a flurry of opt outs around the league, Smallwood is enlisting himself to play in 2020. It’s possible that the Steelers are simply looking into new backfield options in advance of camp, but it’s also possible that the Steelers are bracing for more opt outs. Starter James Conner – who found his way back to the game after a battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma – will in fact play this year, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). The status of the club’s other RBs remains to be seen.
Smallwood, who spent his early NFL seasons with the Eagles, joined Washington last year. In 15 games, he registered 22 carries for 81 yards, good for a 3.7 yards per tote average.
Bills’ Star Lotulelei Opts Out
The hits just keep on coming. Bills defensive tackle Star Lotulelei will opt out of the 2020 season, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). 
Lotulelei has been in the Bills’ starting lineup for each of the past two seasons. Pro Football Focus hasn’t been high on the veteran, but he was set to return as a first-stringer in 2020. In 2019, Lotulelei was on the field for 516 snaps and recorded two sacks from the interior.
The former Panthers first-round pick may be swapped out for another ex-Panther. Vernon Butler, who joined the club earlier this year, could be the next man up. There’s also former Seahawks lineman Quinton Jefferson on hand – one of those two players may wind up as Ed Oliver‘s partner in the middle.
Upwards of 20 NFL players have opted out of the 2020 season, as of this writing. The Patriots have arguably been hit the hardest, with six opt outs including linebacker Dont’a Hightower, offensive tackle Marcus Cannon, and safety Patrick Chung.
Bears’ Eddie Goldman Opts Out
Bears defensive tackle Eddie Goldman will opt out of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 health concerns (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Goldman’s decision leaves the Bears with a major void to fill up front, with just over a month to go before the scheduled start of the season. 
[RELATED: Patriots’ Hightower Opts Out Of 2020 Season]
Goldman was set to continue on the four-year, $42MM+ extension he signed in the fall of 2018. Now, his $4.75MM in guaranteed salary will toll into 2021 and his full contract will run through 2023.
Last year, Goldman suited up for 15 games, notching 29 tackles and a sack. As a big man in the middle, his true value isn’t really captured by the traditional stats. The advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus framed him as the 35th best interior defender in the league out of 118 qualified players, thanks in part to his work against the run. For Goldman, that was actually a down year, and he’s provided steady pressure against quarterbacks over the last two seasons.
The opt outs are piling up quickly, and there are surely more on the way. NFL players have until Friday to formally make the call.