49ers To Release Earl Mitchell
The 49ers are not picking up the contract option for veteran defensive tackle Earl Mitchell, a source tells Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Mitchell provided the Niners with a solid locker room presence, but they’ll have to find that leadership elsewhere. 
The Niners used D.J. Jones as their nose tackle down the stretch of the season so it’s likely that Jones will continue to be the team’s answer in the middle, unless they replace him with someone better between now and September. Mitchell leaves the Bay Area two years into a four-year deal.
At the time of signing, Mitchell’s contract was reported to be a straight-up four-year deal with no option years. Instead, the deal was believed to be a four-year, $16MM pact with a $4.45MM cap figure for the 2019 season. Releasing Mitchell under those terms would call for a $1.5MM dead money charge with $2.95MM in cap savings. Regardless of whether there is an option or not, the outcome is likely the same.
Mitchell finished out the 2018 season with 28 tackles across 14 games (12 starts).
Panthers Re-Sign DE Efe Obada
The Panthers re-signed Efe Obada to a one-year deal, the team announced. The defensive end was set to be an exclusive rights free agent this offseason, so he would not have hit the open market anyway unless the Panthers renounced his rights. 
Obada made history when he became the first player to move from the league’s International Pathway Program to an active roster. The defensive end, who has also had stints with the Chiefs, Falcons, and Cowboys, finished out the year with two sacks. He also earned NFC defensive player of the week honors for his September performance against the Bengals in which he recorded a sack and an interception. That game marked his NFL debut and it could not have gone better for him.
“I’m very grateful. It’s another opportunity to contribute to the team and obviously support myself and my family,” said the Nigeria-born player, who plans to spend most of his offseason in England.
In 2019, Obada says he’s eager to take another giant step forward.
“The main thing for me is being consistent and trusting my training,” Obada said. “I’m going to work on my weaknesses – knowledge of the game, just recognizing things a bit quicker in terms of my keys against the run and things like that. I definitely want to step into a more secure role, into a leadership role on this team. That’s what I’m working toward.”
Cardinals Re-Sign Larry Fitzgerald
Larry Fitzgerald will return for his 16th season. On Wednesday, the Cardinals announced that Fitzgerald is back in the fold with a brand new one-year deal. 
“No player has meant more to this franchise or this community than Larry Fitzgerald,” said Cardinals President Michael Bidwill. “In my discussions with him, it was clear that he is as driven and passionate as ever. We are thrilled he’ll be back for 2019.”
Fitzgerald was once again on the fence about retirement, but it appears that the team’s hiring of Kliff Kingsbury helped convince him to continue playing.
“Hell of a coach. … Look at his resume,” Fitzgerald said this week. “He’s innovative offensively. That’s the wave of the future right now, so I’m excited for the chance to meet him.”
Fitzgerald, 36 in August, was held to just 69 catches for 734 yards and six touchdowns last year as the Cardinals’ offense sagged. If the Cardinals are able to get back on track and balance things with David Johnson, Fitzgerald will likely be able to get back to his old form. In 2017, his age-34 season, Fitzgerald managed 1,156 yards off of 109 catches with six TDs.
Fitzgerald, in theory, could have tested the open market, but he has repeatedly stated that he’s only willing to play in Arizona.
NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/22/19
Saints Sign Six Players To Futures Deals
The Saints’ season is officially in the books, which means that it’s on to the offseason for New Orleans. To kick things off, the Saints signed the following six practice squad players to reserve/futures deals:
- QB J.T Barrett
- DB Chris Campbell
- DB J.T. Gray
- DT Tomasi Laulile
- LB Darnell Sankey
- OT Nate Wozniak
Barrett has been jockeyed on and off of the Saints’ practice squad all year. Over the weekend, Barrett was signed to the Saints’ taxi squad for the 13th time this season. In total, he was involved in a whopping 25 transactions during the 2018 campaign and was released 12 times. Barrett frequently switched placed with wide receiver Paul Turner, but there’s no word yet on whether Turner will be retained via a futures contract.
Sankey, 25 in October, appeared in six games for the Colts last season. This year, he did not see live action for the Saints, but he was on the scout team for most of the year.
Wozniak, a tight end at the University of Minnesota, was signed as a UDFA last year. The Saints moved the 6’10” prospect over to offensive tackle and they’re hoping he’ll be able to use his size and length to his advantage.
Saints Sign J.T. Barrett To Practice Squad (Again)
Ordinarily, a team signing a free agent to its practice squad would not merit much national attention. But Field Yates of ESPN tweets that the Saints have signed quarterback J.T. Barrett to their practice squad, and as Jeff Nowak of The Advocate observes (via Twitter), this marks the 13th time this season that New Orleans has signed Barrett. Nowak notes that Barrett has been involved in a whopping 25 transactions during the 2018 campaign and has been cut 12 times.
Barrett has yet to see any regular season action, but the fact that New Orleans keeps bringing him back can be construed as a positive. The former Ohio State signal-caller signed with the Saints in May after going undrafted, and he reportedly drew interest from several other clubs, including the Colts. New Orleans head coach Sean Payton had good things to say about him after he was signed the first time.
His overall athletic ability suggests that the Saints — or some other team — could deploy Barrett the way that Tayson Hill has been utilized this year, even if Barrett does not get a chance to serve as a primary signal-caller. He completed 63.5% of his passes over four years at Ohio State with 104 touchdowns against 30 picks, and he also ran for 43 scores while posting a 5.0 yards-per-carry mark.
In a corresponding move, the Saints cut wide receiver Paul Turner. The team signed Turner and cut Barrett just four days ago.
Jaguars Re-Sign S Jarrod Wilson
The Jaguars re-signed safety Jarrod Wilson to a three-year contract, according to a team announcement. Wilson was set to become a free agent this offseason, but the new deal will keep him under club control through the 2021 season. 
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Wilson first joined the Jags as an undrafted free agent in 2016. Since then, he has appeared in 47 games for Jacksonville, including two starts. The soon-to-be 25-year-old had 21 tackles, two pass deflections, and a forced fumble in 2018, all of which were career watermarks.
Wilson briefly got in hot water in October when he and three other Jaguars defensive backs were detained in London over an unpaid $64K bar tab. As it turns out, expensive bottles of alcohol were being sent to the players’ table and they believed someone else was paying for them. Cops spoke with Barry Church, D.J. Hayden, Ronnie Harrison, and Wilson, but no charges were filed.
Texans Re-Sign T Seantrel Henderson
Despite suffering a season-ending injury in his first game as a Texan, Seantrel Henderson said he wanted to stay in Houston. He made good on that promise Saturday.
The Texans announced they re-signed the would-be free agent tackle. Henderson will be tethered to a one-year Texans deal for the second straight season. This contract looks similar to Henderson’s 2018 Houston pact, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reporting (on Twitter) it will carry a max value of $4.5MM.
A former seventh-round pick who became a Bills starter during his first two seasons in the league, Henderson signed with the Texans as a free agent last year. He signed for $4MM but went down in Week 1, beginning a season that featured many issues for the Texans’ offensive line.
Following Henderson’s injury, the Texans used a tackle pairing of Julie’n Davenport and Kendall Lamm.
Although they did not get much out of their previous Henderson investment, the Texans are clearly interested in seeing if he can stay healthy and play a role on their 2019 line.
Colts Sign TE Gabe Holmes To Futures Deal
Gabe Holmes has landed on a new team. The Colts announced that they’ve signed the tight end to a reserve/futures contract.
The 27-year-old has bounced around the NFL a bit since going undrafted out of Purdue in 2015. The 6-foot-5 Holmes has had stints with the Raiders, Seahawks, Ravens, and Cardinals. He’s appeared in 10 games during three-year career, including eight this season with Arizona. He finished the season with a single special-teams tackle.
Considering his size, Holmes has always profiled as more of a blocking tight end, although he did haul in five touchdowns during his collegiate career. Holmes could end up being an option to replace impending free agent tight end Ryan Hewitt, who appeared in 12 games (two starts) this season but only hauled in a single catch (which also happened to be a touchdown).
Colts tight end Ross Travis is set to be a restricted free agent. The team still has tight ends Eric Ebron, Jack Doyle, and Mo Alie-Cox under contract for next season.
Cowboys Sign WR Devin Smith
Devin Smith is back in the league. The former Jets second round pick signed a reserve/futures deal with the Cowboys today, according to his agent Jason Bernstein (Twitter link).
The 37th overall pick of the 2015 draft, Smith spent the entire 2018 season out of football after the Jets waived him back in July. Smith was always high on talent coming out of Ohio State, but was plagued by injuries once he reached the pros. He played in ten games his rookie season but managed just four in 2016 before missing the entire 2017 season with his second ACL tear.
In his Jets career, he caught just ten passes for 135 yards and one touchdown. The Cowboys have been doing whatever they can to upgrade their receiving corp ever since releasing Dez Bryant, first by drafting Michael Gallup, then by signing Allen Hurns and trading for Amari Cooper, and now by taking a flyer on Smith. Smith was always known as a speed demon, and drew comparisons to DeSean Jackson coming out of college.
Still only 26, it’s still possible he could develop into a legit deep threat for a team one day if he can stay healthy and prove he still has the burst he used to have. With the reserve/futures deal, he’ll be added to Dallas’ offseason 90-man roster and be with the team for OTA’s and training camp with the chance to compete for a roster spot.