Bears To Sign Ha Ha Clinton-Dix
The Bears are replacing the recently-departed Adrian Amos with Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (via Twitter). It will be a one-year deal for Clinton-Dix, who comes back to the NFC North after a brief hiatus in Washington. Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network tweets that Clinton-Dix will earn $3.5MM in 2019.
We learned yesterday that Clinton-Dix would be meeting with Chicago, and that visit apparently well for both sides. Although he is not as physical as Amos, who signed with the division-rival Packers (Clinton-Dix’s original team), Clinton-Dix does offer arguably better coverage ability. His skill-set is somewhat similar to that of new teammate and fellow safety Eddie Jackson, but the Bears, who boast one of the best overall defenses in the league, should be able to make it work.
The Redskins picked up Clinton-Dix from the Packers at the 2018 trade deadline in exchange for a fourth-round pick. In nine games in the nation’s capital, Clinton-Dix posted 66 tackles, three passes defensed, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. All told, Pro Football Focus graded him as the league’s No. 17 safety last season.
Washington wanted him back, but the prospect of suiting up for a more legitimate contender and for a better defensive unit was the deciding factor. Indeed, Garafolo says that Clinton-Dix turned down more money “elsewhere” to play for Chicago and to reunite with Jackson, his former teammate at Alabama (it is unclear whether the Redskins’ offer was higher than the Bears’ proposal, but at least one team was offering more than $3.5MM).
Seahawks To Re-Sign D.J. Fluker
The Seahawks are finalizing a new two-year deal for guard and Patrice O’Neal lookalike D.J. Fluker (Twitter link via Mike Garafolo of NFL.com). The pact is worth up to $9MM, tweets Herbie Teope of NFL.com. The Seahawks also signed guard Mike Iupati on Thursday morning, but there’s apparently room for both former first-round picks in Seattle.
The Seahawks just lost last year’s 15-game starter at left guard, J.R. Sweezy, to the Cardinals, but things are shaping up nicely on the interior line between Iupati’s arrival and Fluker’s new contract.
Fluker joined the Seahawks last offseason after having spent the 2017 campaign with the Giants. He proceeded to start nine of his 10 games with Seattle, as a hamstring injury forced him to sit out a handful of contests. Pro Football Focus wasn’t particularly fond of his performance in 2018, ranking him 68th among 77 eligible offensive guards.
However, he was an integral member of the club’s top-rated rushing attack in 2018, and Seattle has been working hard to retain him. Although there were no other teams publicly connected to him as of yet, he would surely have attracted more suitors in the coming days.
Cowboys To Re-Sign WR Tavon Austin
The Cowboys are keeping wide receiver Tavon Austin, a source tells Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). Clarence Hill Jr. of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets that it’s a one-year deal, although financial terms of the deal are not yet known. 
The Rams made Austin the No. 8 overall pick in the 2013 draft after being blown away by his blazing speed. So far, Austin has yet to live up to his draft billing, but the Cowboys are still intrigued by his ability. Last year, Austin notched just eight catches in seven games, but he averaged 17.5 yards per grab.
He also has the ability to make plays out of the backfield, as evidenced by his career 6.8 yards per carry average. The Cowboys talked up Austin relentlessly last offseason, and insisted they were going to get him involved on offense after acquiring him. That never really materialized, but they’re willing to give it another shot in 2019.
He can also contribute on special teams, and had a 51-yard punt return in the playoffs this past season that almost went for a touchdown. With Cole Beasley gone to Buffalo, Austin should be the team’s primary punt returner in 2019. Austin struggled with a groin injury in 2018 that ended up costing him nine games.
Steelers To Re-Sign DT Dan McCullers
The Steelers will re-sign defensive tackle Daniel McCullers to a two-year, $2.75MM deal, a source tells Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (on Twitter). With that, the Steelers will have Big Dan back for a sixth season with the team, and possibly a seventh.
McCullers doesn’t play a ton, but the team likes having him around. An old-fashioned run-stuffing nose tackle, McCullers checks in at 352 pounds. He played only around 10% of the defensive snaps last year, and had five tackles with one sack while clogging up the occasional running lane.
A Tennessee product, the Steelers took McCullers in the sixth round of the draft back in 2014. McCullers barely played last year, and his most meaningful role was in 2016, when he played 17.5% of the defensive snaps. It’s not a bad chunk of change for a player used so sparingly.
Falcons Sign TE Luke Stocker
The Falcons have signed tight end Luke Stocker, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Stocker previously played under Falcons offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter with the Buccaneers, so it shouldn’t take long for him to learn the playbook. 
Stocker entered the league as a fourth-round pick of the Bucs in the 2011 draft. Just after Thanksgiving in 2017, the Bucs waived him, but he was quickly scooped up by the Titans. The Titans exercised the 2018 option on his deal and mostly utilized him as a blocker.
Stocker has never caught more than 16 passes in a season, but his blocking acumen has kept him employed over the years. Last year, he graded out as the fifth-best tight end in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus, and ranked among the best pass blockers in the league.
With the Falcons, Stocker may appear in two tight end sets along with Austin Hooper.
Cowboys To Sign DL Christian Covington
Christian Covington is staying in the state of Texas. The former Texans defensive lineman is signing with the Cowboys, a source told Adam Caplan of Sirius XM Radio (Twitter link).
Per Caplan, it’s a one-year deal. No word on the terms yet, but it’s a significant signing for Dallas. A sixth round pick of Houston back in 2015, Covington had a career year last season. In a rotational role, Covington racked up 3.5 sacks in just 12 games last season. He earned above average marks from Pro Football Focus during his time on the field.
He played just under 25% of the defensive snaps in Houston last season, so his production is notable. Covington has struggled a bit with injuries the past couple of seasons, as he played in only seven games in 2017. He’ll be joining a talented Dallas defensive front that took a big step forward last season.
With Randy Gregory suspended again and David Irving appearing to walk away from the game, there should be some playing time open on Dallas’ defensive line next year. Covington played his college ball at Rice, so he’s been in the Texas area for a long time now.
Seahawks To Sign G Mike Iupati
The Seahawks are signing guard Mike Iupati, a source tells Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (on Twitter). It’s a one-year deal for the former Cardinals and 49ers lineman. 
Iupati, 32 in May, is now on to his third NFC West team.He’s set to be a free agent again in 2020, so there’s hope for Iupati to complete the rounds by signing with the Rams next year. The Seahawks just lost last year’s 15-game starter at left guard, J.R. Sweezy, to the Cardinals, so Iupati could slide right into the lineup.
It’ll amount to a nice little swap of left guards between division rivals. Iupati appeared in ten games and started all of them in the desert last season. His once promising career has been derailed the past few seasons. He appeared in just one game in 2017 before an elbow injury ended his year.
He agreed to a pay cut to stay with Arizona last offseason but after another injury-plagued season they voided the final year of his deal. Iupati made the Pro Bowl four straight times from 2012 to 2015, and was a second-team All-Pro as recently as 2015, so if he can stay healthy this could prove to be a very nice signing for Seattle’s offensive line.
Cardinals To Sign Max Garcia
The Cardinals have agreed to sign guard Max Garcia, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). Garcia, 27, spent the previous four years with the Broncos. 
[RELATED: Giants Interested In Cardinals’ Josh Rosen]
Last year, Garcia’s season was cut short in November by a torn ACL. It was a bad blow to a Broncos O-Line that already had lost guard Ronald Leary to an Achilles tear and center Matt Paradis to a broken fibula.
Garcia was a Broncos fourth-round pick in the 2015 draft. Although he started 32 consecutive games from 201-17, Garcia wasn’t a deployed as a starter in 2018 until after Leary got hurt. Indeed, Garcia didn’t play a single offensive snap until Week 6, but he was on the field for every play between Leary’s injury and his own.
Garcia’s 242 snaps were not enough to qualify for Pro Football Focus’ rankings, but he drew a favorable score in 2016 when he started in every game for Denver.
Eagles To Sign L.J. Fort
Steelers inside linebacker L.J. Fort has agreed to sign a three-year deal with the Eagles, as Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. Fort can earn up to $10MM in the deal through playing time incentives and will receive a guarantee of $1.9MM. 
The Steelers made efforts to re-sign Fort, Fowler hears, but they were unable to retain him. Instead, he joins a revised front seven that added Malik Jackson after losing Michael Bennett via trade.
We heard as of yesterday that Pittsburgh was looking to re-sign Fort, but their efforts were unsuccessful and it sounds like the Eagles were able to beat their offer. Fort played in 15 games and made two starts last season, racking up 48 tackles, three for loss, and adding one sack.
Before settling in Pittsburgh for the last four seasons, Fort had bounced between Cleveland, Seattle, and Cincinnati, but had never been able to establish himself anywhere. It’s a significant chunk of change for a player who played less than 30% of the defensive snaps last season, but Fort is also a major contributor on special teams.
Jets Release RB Isaiah Crowell
The Jets have released running back Isaiah Crowell, according to a team announcement. This was the expected move after the club inked Le’Veon Bell to be the new lead back.
We heard this was the plan back in February, and now the Jets are following through. Crowell, 26, matched a career watermark with 4.8 yards per carry last season. He also had six touchdowns on the ground plus 21 catches for 152 yards. While his season was fine on paper, it was a relative disappointment after the Jets signed him to a three-year, $12MM deal last offseason.
His numbers were somewhat inflated by one standout game, as 219 of Crowell’s 685 yards came against the Broncos in a brilliant Week 5 performance. New York ended up placing him on injured reserve with a few weeks to go last season, as he battled a toe injury.
Crowell will now enter a market without too many big-name running backs on it, and he should be able to find a new home relatively easily, although he likely won’t be receiving the $4MM per year he got from the Jets.
An undrafted free agent from Alabama State, Crowell started his career with the Browns and spent his first four years in Cleveland. He was always pretty productive, rushing for at least 600 yards in all four seasons, but for whatever reason the Browns never wanted to commit to him as their full-time running back.