Texans Plan To Release LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin
The rollercoaster that is the career of linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin continues as Houston reportedly plans to release the 28-year-old defender, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. Reeves-Maybin was brought in to compete for the Texans at linebacker but mainly found himself on special teams in 2022. 
The rollercoaster started for Reeves-Maybin in college when, after phenomenal performances in his sophomore and junior years, injuries decimated his senior season at Tennessee. He was still drafted in the fourth round by Detroit back in 2017. He showed promise in a rookie season that saw him rotate in at linebacker and record 30 total tackles, three tackles for loss, and a half sack. During his second year with the Lions, Reeves-Maybin began to earn more playing time before injuries started nagging at him again, eventually landing him on injured reserve.
His third year was a confusing mix. He started out with strong snap counts in the first two weeks of 2019 before finding himself relegated to special teams for several games. He did earn three starts to end the season, finishing off a tough year in strong fashion. He would see another letdown year, though, in 2020, spending the entire season on special teams and recording a career-low in total tackles.
Despite his diminished impact on defense, the Lions re-signed Reeves-Maybin to a one-year contract for 2021. After two games in his special teams role, Reeves-Maybin carved out a bit more playing time, eventually earning a starting spot that he kept for the rest of the season. The one-year tryout was a career year for Reeves-Maybin as he totaled career highs in total tackles (82), tackles for loss (4), forced fumbles (2), and passes defensed (4).
The strong year resulted in the Texans signing him to a two-year, $7.5MM contract. Unfortunately for Reeves-Maybin, the rollercoaster that is his career continued. Aside from one game that saw him play 67-percent of the team’s snaps on defense, Reeves-Maybin was largely relegated back to special teams play. He was passed over in favor of Kamu Grugier-Hill, Jake Hansen, Blake Cashman, and Garret Wallow for playing time alongside Christian Kirksey and rookie third-round pick Christian Harris.
The move to release him doesn’t come as much of a surprise. With Reeves-Maybin due to hold a 2023 cap hit of $4.25MM, the Texans are more than willing to eat the $2MM in dead money to release him. The $2.25MM in cap savings is simply too enticing a return for releasing a special teamer.
As for Reeves-Maybin’s future, if his previous rollercoaster years are any indication, the pending free agent is due for a strong performance in his sixth year of NFL play. Some team will likely take a chance on him for a reasonably low price.
Texans Re-Signing C Scott Quessenberry
As part of efforts to address the interior of the offensive line this offseason, the Texans have re-signed center Scott Quessenberry who was set to hit free agency this spring, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. Quessenberry stepped up this past season and started every game for the Texans after initial starting center Justin Britt‘s departure following Week 1.
A former fifth-round pick for the Chargers, Quessenberry signed with the Texans a year ago, making him the third of his brothers to play in Houston, after offensive tackle David Quessenberry and tight end Paul Quessenberry. He was almost immediately put into action when Britt was placed on the team’s reserve/non-football illness list after the first game of the season.
Quessenberry stepped in and started the remaining 16 games of the season at center. While the move does address the interior offensive line, it may not be the only move Houston makes at center. Quessenberry gets a lot of deserved credit from the Texans’ staff for stepping up when needed, but during his time filling in, Quessenberry graded out as the worst center in the league, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
It wasn’t necessarily close, either. The top two centers in the league, Super Bowl LVII participants Creed Humphrey and Jason Kelce, had offensive grades of 89.9 and 89.5, respectively. Beneath them, the grades gradually decrease from third-graded Browns center Ethan Pocic (79.0) to 35th-graded Cardinals center Billy Price (51.3). The only center graded below Price: Quessenberry, at a distant 36th with an offensive grade of 36.6. Quessenberry had the worst pass blocking grade (25.8) and run blocking grade (43.7) of any center in the NFL.
Still, with Britt expected to retire and the only other lineman on the roster with experience at center being Jimmy Morrissey, who began last season on the Texans’ practice squad, it was important for the Texans to make sure that, at the very least, they had a center with starting experience on the roster.
With further moves to address the interior linemen positions expected on the horizon, it will be interesting to see what Quessenberry’s role next year will be. Regardless of what other help is brought in, he’ll at least have an opportunity to retain his starting job this summer.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/8/23
Here is a look at today’s only tender decision from around the league:
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Lions: LB Anthony Pittman
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/8/23
Today’s minor moves:
Chicago Bears
- Re-signed: FB Khari Blasingame (two-year deal)
Detroit Lions
- Re-signed: G Ross Pierschbacher
Houston Texans
- Claimed off waivers (from Jaguars): QB E.J. Perry
New York Giants
- Re-signed: LB Jarrad Davis
A veteran linebacker formerly with the Lions, Davis joined the Giants very late in the season last year, only starting one regular season game for New York. Davis did go on to start both postseason games for the Giants, doing impressive work for a player with such little time to learn a team’s defense. The 28-year-old had been starting less and less as his career progressed in Detroit, so a renewed opportunity to win a starting position should help to former first-round pick to get back on track.
RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/7/23
While teams have some bigger-picture decisions to make this month, this is also the point on the calendar they need to make calls on restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents. Here is a look at the latest tender decisions from around the NFL:
ERFAs
Tendered:
- Bears: CB Josh Blackwell, DE Andrew Brown
- Browns: CB Thomas Graham Jr., DT Ben Stille
- Dolphins: DB Elijah Campbell
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/7/23
Here are Tuesday’s minor moves:
Carolina Panthers
- Suspended two games: S Sean Chandler; DB violated NFL’s substance-abuse policy
Denver Broncos
- Signed: WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Waived: QB E.J. Perry
Miami Dolphins
- Released: TE Cethan Carter
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DB Ugo Amadi
Seahawks, QB Geno Smith Agree To Deal
MARCH 7: As is often the case, a later update pegged this contract at a slightly lower value. The deal’s base value sits at three years and $75MM, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Smith will collect $40MM fully guaranteed, per Garafolo, and incentives comprise the rest of the $105MM max value. Smith going from a $3.5MM agreement in 2022 to this represents a staggering leap for the 11th-year veteran, even though the $25MM-per-year base pay is not quite what came out Monday night.
MARCH 6: The Seahawks have subscribed for more of quarterback Geno Smith, signing the veteran to a new multi-year contract, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. After leading the Seahawks to the postseason in his first year as a full-time starter for the team, the 2022 NFL Comeback Player of the Year is coming back to Seattle.
Smith agreed to a three-year deal worth $105MM, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. While many details are as of yet unknown, Smith is expected to make $52MM in his first year under the deal. After making $17.55MM over the first 10 years of his career, Smith is now set to double that in his contract’s $35MM average annual value (AAV) and nearly triple it in his first year of the deal. The new contract ranks 13th for NFL quarterbacks in total value and 10th for AAV. 
After serving as a full-time starting quarterback in his rookie and sophomore seasons, Smith, a second-round pick for the Jets in 2013, was seemingly relegated to backup duties. After backing up Ryan Fitzpatrick, Eli Manning, and Philip Rivers for the Jets, Giants, and Chargers, respectively, Smith finally wound up in Seattle to battle Paxton Lynch for the backup quarterback position behind Russell Wilson.
Smith spent the next three years as one of the more capable backups in the NFL, proving as much in 2021 during a four-game stretch that saw Smith throw for 702 yards, five touchdowns, and only one interception while replacing Wilson in surprisingly competitive contests. When Wilson was traded to the Broncos, Smith was given an opportunity to compete for the starting job with newly acquired Drew Lock, who came over in the Wilson trade.
Smith ended up winning Seattle’s starting job and rewarded the Seahawks with the best season of his career. In his first season as a starting quarterback in eight years, Smith led his team to the playoffs, earned a Pro Bowl bid, led the league in completion percentage, and won Comeback Player of the Year. Smith posted career-high numbers in passing yards (4,282) and passing touchdowns (30), and his interception total (11) was the lowest in any of his three seasons as a starter. Smith’s yardage total set a Seahawks record.
The well-traveled passer will now be under contract in Seattle through the 2025 season, during which he will turn 35. It’s good to see Smith make so much out of his second opportunity to start in the NFL. It will be exciting to see how much more he can make of it in the next three years.
Giants, Daniel Jones Agree To Deal; Team To Use Franchise Tag On Saquon Barkley
Minutes before the franchise tag deadline, the Giants have reached an agreement on a Daniel Jones extension. The sides have a deal in place, Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post reports (on Twitter).
This should allow the team to use its franchise tag on Saquon Barkley, and NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo notes that will happen (Twitter link). Jones agreed to a four-year, $160MM extension, Garafolo and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport report. The sides are finalizing the deal, which Rapoport notes can increase by $35MM via incentives (Twitter link).
The Giants had until 3pm CT today to avoid a situation in which Jones was tagged — the team’s plan absent an extension — and Barkley headed toward the open market. Now, the Giants will have both players back in 2023. Barkley’s tag is worth $10.1MM, and he joins Josh Jacobs and Tony Pollard among running backs tagged this year. Jones’ extension will make that number easier for the Giants to fit onto their cap. Tagging Jones would have placed a $32.4MM cap hold on New York’s payroll.
Jones had the Giants up against a deadline that could have meant losing Barkley, pointing to the former first-round pick doing well on the guarantee front. The 25-year-old quarterback will collect $82MM over the deal’s first two years, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets, with SI.com’s Albert Breer noting this does cover Jones’ guarantees (Twitter link). Four years had been the expectation here, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com adds (on Twitter). The Giants are essentially making a two-year bet on Jones ascending.
This represents a staggering financial leap for Jones, who piloted the Giants to the playoffs despite the team’s receiver blueprint changing for the worse early in the season. Jones displayed his best work in terms of efficiency, leading the NFL in interception percentage, and used his legs far more than he had over his first three seasons (810 rushing yards between the regular season and playoffs). Still, the Giants greenlighting a $40MM-per-year extension — the deal’s structure matches Dak Prescott and Matthew Stafford‘s accords — for a QB who threw 15 touchdown passes in his contract year is certainly a notable development in recent transaction history.
Prescott and Stafford agreed to their respective four-year, $160MM extensions on lower salary caps; the cap ballooning past $224MM aided Jones and the Giants. Jones, Prescott and Stafford are all tied for seventh in terms of QB AAV. Though, the money coming for Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert and Jalen Hurts — and possibly Lamar Jackson, as that saga is heating up in Year 3 — stands to bump the NFC trio down a bit this offseason. For now, however, Jones has secured top-10 quarterback money less than a year after the Giants passed on a $22.4MM fifth-year option.
The Giants entered their extension talks with Jones hoping the price would not hit $35MM per year, but the tag deadline worked in Jones’ favor. As Jones hired new representation, the $45MM-AAV number emerged. That figure floated for multiple weeks, with a report late last week indicating Eli Manning‘s successor was asking for a deal north of that number. The Giants negotiated with Jones’ camp daily at the Combine, and the sides agreed on what could be a nice compromise. Jones will have a chance to work in Brian Daboll‘s offense for the long haul, and the team is expected to pursue receiver upgrades to help its passer.
A neck injury ended Jones’ 2021 season after 11 games. Although the Duke product’s 24 touchdown passes as a rookie — in just 13 games — remain a top-10 all-time mark for first-year passers, he did not show much in the way of development during the 2020 and ’21 seasons. In 14 starts in 2020, Jones threw just 11 TD passes. Considering the 2020 CBA made fifth-year options fully guaranteed, the Giants predictably passed on Jones’. But the dual-threat QB showed long-elusive progress in his contract year. The Giants are making a bet superior weaponry will further unlock the Dave Gettleman-era draftee’s capabilities.
As for Barkley, it will be interesting to see how he responds. The former No. 2 overall pick congratulated Jones on his extension (Twitter link), but he is now attached to a $10.1MM salary after turning down an extension in the $12.5MM-per-year range. The guarantees included in the Giants’ proposal are not known, but it has long been assumed GM Joe Schoen is not expected to offer Barkley a deal in the Christian McCaffrey neighborhood ($16MM AAV). That will create another notable deadline for the Giants, who have until July 17 to extend Barkley. Otherwise, the sides cannot discuss a deal until 2024. A compromise of $14MM per year emerged weeks ago, but the Giants and Barkley are still not believed to be close.
Barkley, 26, is obviously a superior NFL player to Jones. Positional value led the Giants to understandably prioritize the less accomplished player. Barkley’s hot start to the 2022 season — one that ended with the Penn State product totaling 1,650 scrimmage yards and 10 touchdowns, completing a comeback from an injury-plagued three seasons — earned him an early negotiation slot with Schoen. Like Jones, the new regime was not completely sold on Barkley coming into the year. Trade buzz circulated early during the 2022 offseason, but both Gettleman-era investments earned the new regime’s trust.
The Giants negotiated with Barkley, and not Jones, during their bye week last season. They did not come close on terms, and although Barkley talks resumed before Jones’ negotiations began this offseason, no compromise is imminent. Fortunately, the team had the tag at its disposal to ensure its cornerstone tandem returned. Considering only one player has skipped the season after being tagged since 1998 (Le’Veon Bell, 2018), it is a good bet Barkley will be in uniform for the Giants in 2023.
The Giants entered Tuesday with more than $36MM in cap space. Today’s transactions will eat into that total considerably, with Fowler adding (via Twitter) Jones’ 2023 cap number should come in around $19MM. But the team’s plan to pursue wideouts and potentially bring back Julian Love should not be entirely nixed because of this afternoon’s high-profile transactions.
Chiefs Release DE Frank Clark
MARCH 7: In a tweet thanking Clark for his contributions over the past four seasons, the Chiefs announced the separation Tuesday. Clark will have a head start on finding a new home in free agency.
MARCH 6: The Chiefs and Erik Burkhardt, current agent for defensive end Frank Clark, were reportedly unable to work out an extension heading into the final year of Clark’s current two-year contract, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. With no new deal getting done to lessen the financial burden on Kansas City, and with Clark set to have a cap hit in 2023 of $28.68MM, the expectation is that the Chiefs will release Clark. 
The two parties have been attempting to work out a cheaper way forward with one of their defensive stars who is third all-time in postseason sacks, but this year’s Super Bowl run gave them a delayed start in negotiations. Having failed to reach any common ground in efforts towards a renegotiated deal, Kansas City will not want to be responsible for the entirety of Clark’s massive cap hit. Releasing Clark will result in $21MM of cap savings and only $7.68MM in dead money.
If the Chiefs go that route, Clark will join this year’s free agent class. With a previous annual average value of $15.09MM, Clark was the league’s fifth highest paid defensive end. He likely becomes the top free agent option alongside fellow Super Bowl LVII participants Robert Quinn and Brandon Graham. Yannick Ngakoue and Jadeveon Clowney will also be top signing options this offseason.
Though the Chiefs and Clark may be parting ways, it may not be the end of Clark’s time in Kansas City. The 29-year-old may find, after testing the waters, that what the Chiefs have to offer is the best fit for him. Regardless, he’ll have that opportunity to test his market value if the Chiefs move forward with these plans.
Ravens Place Non-Exclusive Franchise Tag On Lamar Jackson
Many around the league have been waiting to see the Ravens’ decision with Lamar Jackson. A long-term deal will not be finalized in time for today’s deadline, though. ESPN’s Kimberley Martin reports (via Twitter) that Baltimore is using the non-exclusive franchise tag. A team announcement confirms that the less expensive tag option is their chosen route with the former MVP.
With contract talks resulting in an impasse between the two sides, it comes as little surprise at this point that the tag has been used. Over the course of the weekend, reports emerged that the Ravens were leaning towards going the no-exclusive route, something which carries potential financial benefits from the team’s perspective but also a great deal of risk. 
The non-exclusive tag carries a value of $32.4MM, a figure which is far lower than the roughly $45MM the exclusive version would have cost. In that regard, the former option was the most logical one with respect to Baltimore’s cap situation. However, other teams will now be eligible to send the 26-year-old an offer sheet, which would not have been possible had the Ravens used the exclusive tag. One team frequently linked to Jackson via an offer sheet or tag-and-trade scenario is the Falcons. However, Atlanta will not pursue such a move, per ESPN’s Dianna Russini (Twitter link).
Baltimore would have the option to match any offer sheet which Jackson signs. If they elect not to, they will receive two first-round picks as compensation from Jackson’s new team. The fact that not every squad currently owns Day 1 selections in each of the next two years slightly shrinks the list of potential suitors for him, but competition could quickly ramp up. Jackson, a two-time Pro Bowler, would constitute a significant upgrade over many other incumbent QBs.
The Louisville product has been eligible for a new deal from the Ravens since 2020, but at no point has one seemed to be particularly close. Annual compensation is not thought to be a sticking point from the Ravens’ side, even though any multi-year extension would have surely been the most lucrative in franchise (perhaps league) history. Rather, the matter of guarantees has long been the most pressing issue. Jackson is reportedly seeking a fully-guaranteed pact, a desire seemingly made more plausible after Deshaun Watson‘s historic deal signed with the Browns last offseason.
The Ravens – led by owner Steve Bisciotti – have publicly spoken out against the possibility of making such a commitment to Jackson (and, by extension, a number of other young QBs around the league when they sign second contracts). New deals for Kyler Murray and Russell Wilson signed in 2022 pointed to the Watson accord being an outlier, rather than a new benchmark. That presumably gave the Ravens some leverage in negotiations, but a compromise has not been found.
By going the non-exclusive route, Baltimore is banking on the rest of the league agreeing that full guarantees are too great of a risk for Jackson. The All-Pro has missed five regular season games in each of the past two seasons, including the Ravens’ wild-card loss in 2022. The nature of his PCL injury increasingly became a point of contention as his absence continued deeper into the year, and tension is thought to have increased during the direct negotiations between Jackson himself and GM Eric DeCosta.
Injury problems could scare off other teams to the point where they don’t make an offer to Jackson, or at least one which the Ravens don’t feel comfortable matching. The earliest that teams can submit an offer sheet is the start of the new league year on March 15. Another factor to keep in mind is the possibility of a tag-and-trade situation, where Baltimore could deal him anywhere for any package of trade compensation. That would only be possible, however, after he signed the franchise tender – something he is under no obligation to do until much later in the offseason.
Jackson is the eighth player in franchise history to receive the tag, a move which has more often than not resulted in a long-term deal being agreed upon before the July deadline. Attention will continue to be placed on the two sides in this situation, as negotiations will continue in the hopes of a mega-deal being finalized before the possibility of Jackson skipping portions of the offseason becomes more likely.
A statement from DeCosta reads in part, “We will continue to negotiate in good faith with Lamar, and we are hopeful that we can strike a long-term deal that is fair to both Lamar and the Ravens. Our ultimate goal is to build a championship team with Lamar Jackson leading the way for many years to come.”
Jackson’s importance to the Ravens – from his numerous all-time NFL records to his overall winning percentage of .707% since 2019 – is clear for any observer. The degree to which it is seen and acted upon by any other team (and if so, Baltimore’s willingness to keep him in place for the long-term future) will be a major storyline as the QB landscape takes shape.