Patriots To Sign Montravius Adams
The Patriots have been the big spenders of the first week of free agency, and they aren’t done yet. New England is signing defensive end Montravius Adams, his agent Drew Rosenhaus tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
It’s a one-year pact worth up to $2.5MM, Schefter reports. As he notes, it’s the fifth deal that Rosenhaus has done with the Pats this week. Adams comes to the Patriots from Green Bay, where he didn’t get much playing time but apparently flashed enough promise. A third-round pick out of Auburn in 2017, Adams appeared in only eight games this past year with no starts, making 11 tackles and no sacks.
He played 12.6 percent of the defensive snaps total, so about 25 percent in the eight games he played. He started two games in 2019 and one the year before. He has just 1.5 sacks in his career. It’s not as splashy as some of their other signings, but the defensive front was a weakness for the Patriots last year and Bill Belicihck is leaving no stone unturned in improving it. Adams is still only 25.
Dolphins, WR Will Fuller Agree To Terms
Long rumored to be targeting wide receivers in free agency, the Dolphins made a big move Thursday. They are signing former Texans wideout Will Fuller, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com report (on Twitter).
Fuller agreed to a one-year deal to join the Dolphins, and Rapoport tweets that pact will include more than $10MM. Incentives are present in the deal as well, Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com tweets. While Fuller’s PED suspension will prevent him from playing in Week 1 next season, he represents an upgrade for a Dolphins team that did not have much in the way of receiver depth in 2020.
Although the former first-round pick battled injuries from 2016-19, never eclipsing the 14-game mark in any of those seasons, Fuller stayed healthy during his contract year. One of the NFL’s premier deep threats, Fuller established new career-high marks — 879 receiving yards, 16.6 yards per catch, eight touchdowns — despite only playing in 11 games.
The Dolphins are believed to be targeting both an outside receiver and a slot threat, but Fuller represents a promising start to the team’s 2021 plans at this position. Deshaun Watson‘s QB rating was noticeably higher with Fuller in the lineup than it was without him, and prior to the Pro Bowl passer requesting a trade, was lobbying for the Texans to re-sign the wideout. The Texans opted not to use their franchise tag on Fuller, who will bet on himself via this one-year deal. With Watson on the Miami radar, this Fuller signing should trip some alarms on the trade front.
Fuller has suffered a broken collarbone, a torn ACL and multiple hamstring injuries as a pro. The ACL tear occurred in 2018, and Fuller’s 2020 would support that he has fully recovered from the severe knee malady. Fuller will join DeVante Parker in Miami, with the Dolphins potentially prepared to add an impact slot player to help Tua Tagovailoa (or Watson) as well.
Cowboys, DL Brent Urban Agree To Deal
Veteran defensive lineman Brent Urban will head to Dallas. The seven-year vet agreed to terms on a one-year Cowboys contract, according Kate Urban (Brent’s wife), on Twitter.
Urban most recently played for the Bears, suiting up in all 16 games for the playoff-qualifying team last season. He has also played for the Ravens and Titans.
A former Ravens fourth-round pick, Urban spent five seasons in Baltimore. He worked as a 16-game starter for the playoff-bound 2018 Ravens squad but saw the Titans blunt that momentum by releasing him midway through the 2019 season. The Bears provided a bounce-back opportunity, however, scooping him up soon after and then re-signing him during the 2020 free agency period.
Last season, the 29-year-old D-lineman registered 2.5 sacks and made eight starts for a Bears defense that ranked in the top 10 in DVOA. Urban played 35% of Chicago’s defensive snaps last season and figures to be a rotational option for a Cowboys defense in need of extensive help after a brutal 2020 outing.
Saints To Re-Sign P.J. Williams
The Saints might be in a bad cap spot, but that isn’t stopping them from bringing back a lot of their own guys. New Orleans has reached an agreement to re-sign defensive back P.J. Williams, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets.
The deal is for one year and worth $2.3MM, which is fully guaranteed, Rapoport writes. He signed a similar one-year, $2MM deal last offseason. The Saints drafted him in the third-round back in 2015, and he’s been with the team ever since. A torn hamstring cost him his entire rookie season, and a serious head injury limited him to only two games in 2016.
After playing in just two games through his first two seasons, he’s now played in at least 14 each of the past four seasons. He’s been a part-time starter each year, playing at various spots in the defense. Williams is versatile and has extensive experience at both safety and cornerback.
This past season he started three games and played about 48 percent of the defensive snaps. The Florida State product had 40 tackles, two passes defended, two fumble recoveries, and an interception.
Bills, Mitchell Trubisky Agree To Deal
Mitchell Trubisky found a landing spot, and it will not give him a chance to start in 2021 (barring injury). The former Bears quarterback intends to sign with the Bills, Adam Schefter and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com report (on Twitter). The Bills have announced the signing. It’s a one-year deal worth $2.5MM, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (via Twitter).
The former No. 2 overall pick will be set to back up Josh Allen in Buffalo. This marks the latest in a slew of bridge- or backup-level quarterback signings this week, and it will end Trubisky’s scrutinized four-year tenure in Chicago. It is a one-year agreement, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.
A Cleveland-area native, Trubisky will return to the shores of Lake Erie in an effort to stabilize his career. While the Bears did advance to the playoffs in two of the maligned passer’s four seasons, Trubisky’s Chicago tenure veered off course quickly. The one-year North Carolina starter showed early in his run he was incapable of playing on the level of fellow 2017 first-round QBs Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. The Bears used Trubisky as a starter for most of his four seasons with the team but have since signed Andy Dalton.
This will put Trubisky ahead of another quarterback who has seen his value drop, with Jake Fromm now having a more difficult path to becoming Allen’s top backup. Once rumored as a first-round pick, the ex-Georgia passer went in the 2020 fifth round. Fromm now projects as Buffalo’s third-stringer again. Previous Bills backup Matt Barkley is a free agent.
The Bears, who traded up for Trubisky four years ago, turned to him as their Week 1 starter again in 2020. But Matt Nagy benched him in Week 3. However, Nagy reinstalled Trubisky as his QB1 after Nick Foles then struggled and suffered an injury. Trubisky helped the Bears beat some sub-.500 opposition down the stretch, but that run was good enough to lift the team to the postseason for the second time in three years. Trubisky, his Nickelodeon MVP award notwithstanding, struggled in a one-sided loss to the Saints. He will attempt to regroup behind Allen in Buffalo.
Giants To Sign Kyle Rudolph
The Giants are adding a pass-catcher from the NFC North. No, it’s not Kenny Golladay (sorry Giants fans), but the team has come to terms on an agreement with tight end Kyle Rudolph, his agency Athletes First announced on Instagram (via Will Brinson of CBS Sports on Twitter).
The deal is expected to be for two years with a max value around $14MM, Mika Garafolo of NFL Network tweets. Rudolph was released by the Vikings a couple weeks ago after spending the first ten years of his career in Minnesota. We heard after his release that he was interested in joining the Patriots, but New England opted to sign Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry instead. If you can’t join ’em, why not go to the team that’s beat them in the Super Bowl twice?
It’s been a busy day for tight end news, with trades, releases, and signings. The Chargers signing Jared Cook could turn out to have a domino effect on the rest of the market as the remaining quality options are getting snatched up. A Zach Ertz trade could be the next piece to fall into place.
Rudolph has never been a star but has always been a reliable option, and made the Pro Bowl in 2012 and 2017. He’s 31 now and coming off a couple down years, but had 634 yards in 2018. Evan Engram is still in the picture, and Daniel Jones will now have a very solid tight end duo at his disposal.
Texans To Release P Bryan Anger
Amid the considerable changes to the Texans’ setup this offseason, they will move on from their punter of the past two years. The Texans are releasing Bryan Anger, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter).
Anger, who signed with Houston during Bill O’Brien‘s short but memorable stay as GM, has played nine NFL seasons. The team will save just more than $2MM in cap space by moving on.
Known primarily for being a former third-round pick, with the Jaguars having taken him in 2012, Anger has played in Jacksonville, Tampa and Houston. He cleared 46 yards per punt in each of his two seasons with the Texans.
Raiders To Re-Sign TE Derek Carrier
Derek Carrier will stay with the Silver and Black for another season. The Raiders are re-signing the veteran tight end, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
This one-year contract will put Carrier in line to play a fourth season with the team. The 2021 season will be Carrier’s 10th as a pro. He suited up with the Eagles, 49ers, Washington and the Rams prior to signing with the then-Oakland Raiders in 2018.
The 30-year-old vet has operated as a blocking tight end, for the most part, as a Raider. While playing in 16 games last season, Carrier caught one pass.
He will reprise his role alongside Darren Waller. The Raiders may have more use for Carrier next season, depending on how the rest of their offseason goes at this spot, given Jason Witten‘s retirement.
Raiders To Sign Kenyan Drake
This one is going to raise some eyebrows. The Raiders are signing running back Kenyan Drake, a source told Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
They’re making a significant investment, giving Drake a two-year $11MM pact that can be worth up to $14.5MM. In a follow up tweet, Schefter reports that the $11MM is all guaranteed. Jon Gruden clearly is looking to reinvent his running game this offseason, as most of the offensive line has already been shown the door this month.
The signing, and money they committed, are somewhat surprising given the presence of 2019 first-round pick Josh Jacobs in the backfield. Jacobs had a very promising rookie season but took a step back in 2020 as the O-line struggled in run blocking and he averaged only 3.9 yards per carry. He did still have 12 touchdowns on the ground though.
As for how they’ll complement each other, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets that Gruden views “Drake as a jack-of-all-trades” who will “figure prominently in the passing game.” He also notes that Drake is close with Jacobs, which makes sense considering both went to Alabama, so don’t expect any bad blood in this timeshare.
Drake only had 25 catches for 137 yards in Arizona last year, but he was much more involved in the passing attack his last couple of years in Miami. A third-round pick of the Dolphins back in 2016, Drake showed plenty of promise but clashed with the coaching staff over his role and was eventually traded to Arizona around the 2019 trade deadline.
He caught fire in the second half of that season under Kliff Kingsbury, and expectations were sky-high in 2020. He didn’t quite meet those expectations, averaging a shrug-worthy 4.0 yards per carry and losing playing time to Chase Edmonds at times. He did still rush for 955 yards and 10 touchdowns, and the Raiders will have a very solid one-two punch at running back in 2021. Now they just need an offensive line.
Steelers To Re-Sign Chris Wormley
The Steelers just let Tyson Alualu walk to the Jaguars in free agency, but they aren’t letting all their big guys up front head out the door. Pittsburgh is re-signing defensive tackle/end Chris Wormley to a two-year deal, a source told Mark Kaboly of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Jordan Strack of WTOL 11 was first to tweet the news. Pittsburgh sent a 2021 fifth-round pick to the Ravens in a rare inter-division trade to acquire Wormley almost exactly a year ago. Baltimore had originally drafted him 74th overall back in 2017. Wormley has played both in the middle and on the end, and stands at 6’5 and 300 pounds.
He started 13 games for Baltimore between 2018-19, then moved into a rotational role in Pittsburgh last year. He missed three games due to injury, and played just under 20 percent of the defensive snaps when he was active. He finished with three QB hits and a sack in his relatively limited action.