Patriots Sign Benjamin Watson
Benjamin Watson‘s Thursday visit with the Patriots will lead to a reunion. Ending a brief retirement, Watson plans to sign with the defending Super Bowl champions, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. This will be a one-year, $3MM deal, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
Watson signed the contract, according to Ben Volin of the Boston Globe (on Twitter).
The Patriots drafted the tight end in the first round of the 2004 draft and look set to turn to him as one of their post-Rob Gronkowski solutions. This will be quite the interesting reunion, considering Watson is nine years older than Gronkowski and preceded the future Hall of Famer in intentions to retire less than six months ago.
Word surfaced shortly before the draft that Watson was not set on leaving the game behind, and Gronk’s retirement naturally made New England a logical destination. Watson also had the Chiefs, Bills and 49ers on his radar (after the Saints signed Jared Cook) and will join Austin Seferian-Jenkins as key components of the Pats’ tight end corps.
He spent six years with the Pats, leaving after the 2009 season to sign with the Browns. Watson has since played for the Ravens and enjoyed multiple Saints stints. A month after Watson initially left New England, the Pats added Gronk and reshaped their dynasty. Now as they look to further prolong it, they will turn to a 38-year-old veteran.
Only a few tight ends, including Antonio Gates last season, have played past their 38th birthdays. No pure tight end, discounting long snappers, has suited up past his 39th. Watson turns 39 in December. Only Watson and Larry Fitzgerald remain in the league as skill-position players from the ’04 draft.
Watson finished last season with 35 receptions for 400 yards and two touchdowns. While he will not be mistaken for Gronkowski, the former Super Bowl winner has obviously displayed remarkable staying power and stands to team with ASJ to help out in filling the void Gronk’s retirement created. A former No. 32 overall pick, Watson caught six of Tom Brady‘s 50 touchdown passes in 2007 and, amazingly, will be called upon to help in the quarterback’s age-42 season.
Dolphins To Sign OT Jordan Mills
Former Bills’ tackle Jordan Mills will sign a one-year, $3MM deal with the Dolphins, a source tells ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The Dolphins wisely waited until after May 7 to ink Mills, which means that his arrival won’t affect the club’s 2020 compensatory draft pick formula. 
[RELATED: Dolphins Interested In Nick Perry]
The Bills didn’t see a place for Mills as they overhauled their offensive line this offseason, but the Dolphins are curious to see what he can do. He offers tons of starting experience – he’s made 16 starts in each of the last three seasons with 82 starts in total – yet comes to Miami at a reserve’s pay rate.
The Dolphins could certainly use the additional front five protection after losing Ja’Wuan James in free agency to the Broncos. In fact, they can use talent in general, though skeptics say the Dolphins are aiming to tank in 2019 with an eye on the 2020 draft.
Jaguars Release Cody Kessler
The Jaguars released quarterback Cody Kessler, according to league sources who spoke with Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Kessler made four starts for the Jags last year while Blake Bortles was benched. Now, both players are gone. 
Last year, Kessler took the reins for four games, but didn’t exactly set the world on fire. All in all, he completed 64.9% of his passes (85-of-131) for 709 yards with two touchdowns against two interceptions.
This year, the Jaguars will trot out a totally revamped quarterback room with new starter Nick Foles, sixth-round rookie Gardner Minshew, 2018 sixth-round choice Tanner Lee, and Alex McGough. Of course, at least one of those backup QBs will be displaced between now and September.
In other Jags news, linebacker Telvin Smith says he wants to stay put, despite his absence from workouts and continued whispers about his future.
Falcons Sign First-Round Pick Kaleb McGary
The Falcons announced the signing of first-round tackle Kaleb McGary on Thursday. In addition to McGary, the club also inked fourth-round cornerback Kendall Sheffield. 
The Falcons used their first Round 1 pick (No. 14) overall on Boston College guard Chris Lindstrom. But, they weren’t done revamping their offensive line, and they refused to let McGary get away. The Falcons traded their second- and third-round picks to the Rams to move back into the first round and snag McGary at No. 31 overall, giving them an alternative to Ty Sambrailo at right tackle.
Sheffield began his collegiate career at Alabama before taking his talents to Ohio State, where he spent the last two seasons. Last year, he notched 35 tackles and two interceptions, putting him on the NFL radar. He’ll now look to stand out in an Atlanta cornerback group that is without Robert Alford and Brian Poole.
With McGary and Sheffield taken care of, the Falcons have just one straggler left in Lindstrom.
Seahawks To Sign CB Jamar Taylor
Veteran cornerback Jamar Taylor is set to sign with the Seahawks, sources tell Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter). Terms of the deal are not yet known, but the two sides may hammer out terms on Thursday as Taylor meets with coaches and tours the facility. 
[RELATED: Seahawks To Sign Ziggy Ansah]
Taylor should figure into the Seahawks’ slot corner competition where he would potentially replace the departed Justin Coleman. The 2013 second-round pick spent the first three seasons of his career with the Dolphins before being dealt to the Browns. He was productive during his two seasons with Cleveland, including a 2016 campaign where he had three interceptions and 13 passes defended. In 2017, he appeared in a career-high 16 games and finished with a career-high 62 tackles.
Taylor, who will turn 29 in September, will battle with Akeem King, Kalan Reed, Jeremy Boykins, and rookie Ugo Amadi for the primary slot role. Earlier this offseason, coach Pete Carroll indicated that the nickel spot would be wide open in camp.
Seahawks To Sign Ziggy Ansah
The Seahawks won out for Ziggy Ansah. The former Lions defensive end will head west on a one-year deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter).
Ansah will sign his deal on Thursday, Rapoport tweets. This will take a key free agent off the board, a day after UFA signings became disconnected from 2020 compensatory picks.
It appeared the Seahawks and Bills were vying for Ansah, with Brandon Beane remarking hours ago his team was still negotiating with the former Pro Bowl pass rusher. But the Seahawks, who had a much bigger immediate need at defensive end, will make the addition. Ansah will join first-round pick L.J. Collier in a new-look Seattle edge corps.
The Seahawks’ Frank Clark trade left them vulnerable on the edge. They used the No. 29 overall pick on Collier, who maxed out at six sacks in his best TCU season, but now have a former top-five pick in the fold. Ansah has struggled with injuries, his most recent shoulder malady set to keep him out until perhaps midway through training camp, but has been productive when healthy. The soon-to-be 30-year-old edge presence has 48 career sacks, his 14.5 in 2015 sending him to the Pro Bowl and the 12 in 2017 inducing the Lions to place their franchise tag on him last year.
Free agent edges Nick Perry and Shane Ray also visited Seattle, but the team will go with Ansah. Perry and Ray join several starter- or sub-package-level pass rushers still available. Derrick Morgan, Michael Johnson, Andre Branch, Pernell McPhee, Dion Jordan and others remain on the market.
Eagles Waive WR Johnny Holton
Signed to a reserve/futures contract after last season, Johnny Holton did not quite make it to Eagles OTAs.
The Eagles waived the former UDFA wide receiver on Wednesday. Holton spent his first three NFL seasons with the Raiders, contributing on special teams and, in 2017, when the team went to four- and five-receiver sets.
Philadelphia used one of its five draft choices on a wideout, third-rounder J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, and have a host of other receivers jockeying for position behind Alshon Jeffery, DeSean Jackson and Nelson Agholor. Braxton Miller, Mack Hollins and possible AAF-buoyed rebound candidate Charles Johnson comprise part of Philly’s mix for the final receiver spots.
Holton, 27, had his best season with the ’17 Raiders, averaging 24.2 yards per catch and scoring three touchdowns. He played in just one game in 2018.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/8/19
More draft choices put pen to paper on Wednesday. Here is the latest on the pick-signing front:
- After signing two sixth-round picks on Tuesday, the Steelers checked a few more items off their offseason checklist by signing three more draftees. Third-round wide receiver Diontae Johnson signed the standard four-year rookie contract. Both fourth-round running back Benny Snell and seventh-round offensive lineman Derwin Gray signed as well. Johnson will be the player likely tasked with making the earliest impact, considering the Steelers lost arguably the greatest wideout in franchise history. Johnson will join Donte Moncrief as the new receivers tasked with helping the team replace Antonio Brown.
- The Dolphins signed both of their seventh-round picks — fullback Chandler Cox and running back Myles Gaskin — on Wednesday. Gaskin, the No. 234 overall pick, succeeded Saquon Barkley at Penn State. Despite his late draft slot, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets he is the frontrunner to become Miami’s No. 3 back.
Raiders Sign 10 UDFAs
Teams continue to announce their undrafted free agent hauls. Here is the Raiders’ 10-man contingent:
- Te’von Coney, LB (Notre Dame)
- Lester Cotton, G (Alabama)
- Keelan Doss, WR (UC Davis)
- Koa Farmer, LB (Penn State)
- Alec Ingold, FB (Wisconsin)
- Andre James, T (UCLA)
- Dylan Mabin, CB (Fordham)
- Lukayus McNeil, G (Louisville)
- Keisean Nixon, CB (South Carolina)
- Tyler Roemer, T (San Diego)
Going heavy on offensive linemen after a nine-player draft did not bring any blockers, the Raiders added some big-school talent with extensive starting experience. Cotton started 28 games for the Crimson Tide, at both left and right guard, helping Bo Scarbrough, Damien Harris and Raiders first-rounder Josh Jacobs to big per-carry numbers. McNeil has both guard and tackle experience and was a key presence (46 starts in a four-year career) in helping Lamar Jackson to two dominant seasons with the Cardinals.
The duo, along with James and Roemer, will battle to join 2018 second-round pick Brandon Parker among the Raiders’ backup linemen. With Brandon Marshall and Vontaze Burfict signed to one-year deals, the Raiders’ Las Vegas tenure may need some new blood at linebacker. The Raiders did not draft one, so Coney (two 100-plus-tackle seasons with the Fighting Irish) and Farmer (28 starts with the Nittany Lions) figure to be candidates to stick around via the 53-man roster or, more likely, the practice squad.
Doss said he received better offers than what the Raiders proposed, but UC Davis’ all-time receiving leader opted to play for his hometown team (before it relocates to Vegas next year). Jon Gruden mentioned pre-draft that he wanted to add at least one more cornerback to the roster, but the Raiders drafted both Trayvon Mullen (in Round 2) and Isaiah Johnson (in Round 4). That will make Mabin and Nixon’s paths to the active roster difficult.
Eagles Extend S Blake Countess
Days after reacquiring Blake Countess, the Eagles added a year to his contract. The Eagles submitted a successful waiver claim for Countess last week, bringing their 2016 draft choice back to Philadelphia, and they redid his deal.
Countess’ contract now runs through 2020, Reuben Frank of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports. The recent Rams mainstay was entering a contract year. While Countess’ new salaries are not known, Frank adds that the Eagles lowered his 2019 price with this new deal.
Entering the offseason as a restricted free agent, Countess was tethered to a $2.025MM salary via original-round tender. The 25-year-old safety refused a Rams pay cut and ended up back with the Eagles, who initially waived him months after drafting him.
The Eagles did not draft a safety, but their post-draft Countess claim has them in good position on the back line. Countess and former Vikings starter Andrew Sendejo appear in line to back up Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod. Jenkins, though, is away from the team and McLeod accepted a substantial pay decrease after missing most of last season. Cornerback Avonte Maddox also played some safety last season, giving the Eagles plenty of options at this spot.