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AFC Notes: Browns, Raiders, Jackson, Ravens

February 26th, 2014 at 5:47pm CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on the Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday, NFL Media’s Daniel Jeremiah said that he’s hearing “from several different places” that the Browns are targeting quarterback Derek Carr with the No. 26 pick rather than drafting a signal-caller at No. 4 (link via Marc Sessler of NFL.com). Of course, there’s plenty of time for that stance to change over the next two and a half months. More out of the AFC..

  • Raiders owner Mark Davis spoke to Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle about the need for a franchise quarterback, the team’s boatload of cap space, and whether or not this is a make-or-break year in Oakland.
  • Mike Wilkening of Pro Football Talk expects the Broncos and Titans to be in the mix for linebacker D’Qwell Jackson, who hit the free agent market today when he was cut by the Browns. Seven teams have reached out to Jackson since his release and he’s currently deciding where to visit first, tweets Jason La Canfora of NFL.com.
  • Torrey Smith is very open to the idea of the Ravens adding a receiver in free agency or the draft, as he tells Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. “The more, the merrier,” Smith said. “The more help you can have no matter what position it is, it’s only going to make us stronger as a unit. Whatever we bring in, whether it’s free agency or a rookie, we’ll welcome him in with open arms.”
  • Although Mike Chappell of the Indianapolis Star suggested yesterday that Adam Vinatieri could be a franchise tag option for the Colts, that’s not the case, according to Joel Corry of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). As Corry notes, even though Vinatieri didn’t play out two seasons as the Patriots‘ franchise player, he was tagged twice by New England, meaning he’d be eligible for the quarterback’s franchise salary if he were tagged a third time.

Plaxico Burress Wants To Continue Playing

February 25th, 2014 at 5:34pm CST by Zachary Links

Veteran wide receiver Plaxico Burress was said to be mulling retirement, but that no longer appears to be the case. The former Steelers star told ESPN’s Outside The Lines that he believes he still has more football ahead of him, according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News (via Sulia).

“I believe I do. I am rehabbing three or four days a week and I may go out and give it one more big push and that is the competitor in me,” said the 36-year-old, who added that he’s also working on his own business venture at the same time.

Burress did not appear in a regular season game with Pittsburgh in 2013 and probably won’t be back with the Steelers in 2014. Burress’ last productive year was with the Jets in 2011 when he hauled in 45 catches for 612 yards with eight TDs. Of course, the veteran lost years of his career thanks to his infamous gun incident.

AFC East Links: Jets, Dolphins, Albert

February 24th, 2014 at 10:08pm CST by Ben Levine

While various reports may claim the contrary, the Jets are a “realistic possible landing spot” for quarterback Michael Vick, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reports (video link). Rapoport cites the team’s desire for a veteran alternative to Geno Smith, as well as Vick’s connection to offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg. 

A few other notes from one of the Jets’ rivals in the AFC East…

  • The Dolphins and Brent Grimes continue to make progress, and the cornerback is “pretty optimistic” about returning to Miami, writes Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Grimes also said that the franchise tag has not been brought up in negotiations.
  • In the same article, Jackson mentions that the Dolphins have not yet made offers to impending free agents Randy Starks or Paul Soliai. The team has expressed interest in bringing back both players, though.
  • The Dolphins have made signing offensive tackle Branden Albert a “high priority,” league sources told Ian Rapoport (via NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal). The Cardinals are also zeroing in on Albert.
  • Dolphins’ Philip Wheeler isn’t likely to be a casualty of the June 1st cut day, writes Ryan Feder of OverTheCap.com.

Lions Will Seek Veteran Quarterback

February 24th, 2014 at 3:07pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lions won’t be in the market for a starting quarterback this offseason, with Matthew Stafford firmly entrenched as the number one in option in Detroit. But the team will be keeping an eye out in free agency for a veteran option to back up Stafford, according to GM Martin Mayhew (link via Justin Rogers of MLive.com).

“We’ll get into the free agency market and see what it looks like and see if there’s a veteran out there that’s right for us, that we feel comfortable with,” Mayhew said.

One free agent who will attract some interest from the team is Shaun Hill, who has been Stafford’s backup in Detroit for the last several seasons. However, it sounds as if he’ll just be one of the options the Lions consider, rather than necessarily heading into free agency as the club’s first choice. Former Boise State signal-caller Kellen Moore also remains under contract with the team for one more year, though Mayhew doesn’t love the idea of heading into 2014 with Moore as the primary backup.

While this year’s top free agent quarterbacks such as Michael Vick, Matt Cassel, and Chad Henne will likely be seeking opportunities to start, there are plenty of other intriguing options on the market. Josh McCown, Josh Freeman, Matt Flynn, Tarvaris Jackson, and Kellen Clemens are among the notable No. 2 QBs expected to be available next month.

Bills Notes: QBs, Johnson, Dareus, Williams

February 23rd, 2014 at 11:08am CST by Rory Parks

Although it is unusual for a team’s general manager to make definitive statements at this time of year, Bills GM Doug Whaley made it clear that his club will not take a quarterback with its first-round pick, according to ESPN.com’s Mike Rodak. Starting quarterback E.J. Manuel was the only quarterback selected in the first round of last year’s draft, which boasted a weak class of QBs. Given the more talented group of quarterbacks in the 2014 class, and given that Manuel suffered his third knee injury in December, there has been speculation that the Bills would take a QB in the first round for the second consecutive year. Whaley, however, indicated that the Bills would not go in that direction.

More notes out of Buffalo:

  • Wide receiver Stevie Johnson‘s future with the team is uncertain, given that he is due a sizable roster bonus in March. However, head coach Doug Marrone has reached out to Johnson to assure him that the team still wants him. As Tim Graham of the Buffalo News reported, there was some disconnect between Johnson and the Bills’ coaching staff last season, and his “act” was wearing thin among his teammates.
  • Whaley says that a contract extension for defensive tackle Marcell Dareus is “on the radar,” but it does not sound as though it is a priority right now. Since Dareus was a first-round pick under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Bills hold a team option on him for the 2015 season.
  • Although defensive end Mario Williams will cost the Bills a hefty $18.8MM cap hit in 2014, Whaley indicated that he has no intention of restructuring Williams’ deal at this time.
  • In a separate piece for the Buffalo News, Graham indicates that the Bills met with Jairus Byrd‘s agent on Saturday and that the team still hopes to sign Byrd to a long-term deal.

Texans Rumors: Smith, Manziel, Draft

February 21st, 2014 at 1:00pm CST by Zachary Links

League sources “increasingly believe” that the Texans are leaning toward Johnny Manziel with the first overall pick, but we’ve got a long way to go between now and the draft. The latest out of Houston..

  • Texans GM Rick Smith said he hasn’t narrowed down his choices on the No. 1 pick to a few choices just yet as the club is still early in the evaluation process, tweets Brian Smith of the Houston Chronicle. Manziel would make a lot of sense for the Texans as they’re expected to move away from quarterback Matt Schaub.
  • Smith cautioned that taking a player based too much off of need can be dangerous in the end, Brian Smith tweets.
  • The Texans are scheduled to meet with Manziel on Saturday, tweets John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.
  • As expected, the Texans don’t expect to use the franchise tag this offseason, Smith tweets.

Panthers Tops In “Dead Money”

February 18th, 2014 at 8:36pm CST by Matt Feminis

Thanks in large part to last season’s trade of Jon Beason, the Panthers have $17.8MM in “dead money,” more than any team in the league, according to ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert (full chart here). “Dead money” is defined as cap space consumed by players no longer on the roster, whether they retired, were released or traded. The numbers will fluctuate as rosters continue to evolve, but listed below are the five teams with at least $10MM worth of “dead money” at present time, including the players accounting for most of the sunk costs:

At the other end of the spectrum, six teams have less than $1MM in “dead money”: Jets, Rams, Buccaneers, Colts, Seahawks and Bengals.

Cap Space Used By Top Players

February 17th, 2014 at 12:38pm CST by Rob DiRe

On Saturday, we looked at the ongoing contract talks between the Lions and Ndamukong Suh, particularly at how Suh, Matthew Stafford, and Calvin Johnson are all in line to be among the highest paid players at their positions. Today, Justin Rogers of MLive.com took a closer look at how NFL teams spread their money out among their top three, top five, and top ten players, putting together a table of how all 32 NFL teams’ cap space is spread out.

A few notes from his table (can be found at MLive.com):

  • Eight franchises are devoting less than $30MM to their top three contracts, including three playoff teams in 2013. Bengals, Colts, and 49ers)
  • Nine teams are slotted to devote more than $40MM to their top three contracts. None of those teams made the playoffs in 2013. (Ravens, Bears, Cowboys, Lions, Texans, Giants, Steelers, Rams, and Buccaneers)
  • The Jets are on the hook for the 10th-most money to their top three contracts, at $39.779, also missing the playoffs last year.
  • The Seahawks will use the highest percentage of their cap dollars for their top ten contracts, at 69.59%. Out of ten teams to commit 63% or more of their cap space to the top ten contracts, the Seahawks were the only team to make the playoffs.
  • While the chart shows spending money doesn’t guarantee success, being cheap doesn’t equal winning either. The Raiders spent the lowest amount along all three categories and wound up with the fifth overall pick in this year’s draft.

NFC North Notes: Combine, Franchise Tags

February 17th, 2014 at 11:32am CST by Rob DiRe

As teams get ready for the scouting combine next week, Ben Goessling of ESPN.com previews the top priority the Vikings‘ scouts will have going into Indianapolis. He believes the team will draft to improve their defensive line, and sees the team targeting Louis Nix of Notre Dame, Ra’Shede Hageman of Minnesota, and Kony Ealy of Missouri. Here are some other notes from around the NFC North:

Young Stars In Line For Payday

February 14th, 2014 at 8:43pm CST by Matt Feminis

The NFL published its “All-Under-25” team, highlighting the league’s best players under the age of 25. From a contractual standpoint, five stand out as free agents to be at the conclusion of the 2014 season:

  • Rams defensive end Robert Quinn – Everyone knew Quinn was dripping with upside when the Rams picked him the first round of the 2011 draft, and the pass rusher extraordinaire’s third season was something to behold. Quinn was an unblockable one-man wrecking crew, garnering NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors and putting himself in position to break the bank on his second deal.
  • Cowboys left tackle Tyron Smith – Knocking on the door of elite status at a critical position, Smith is expected to get a mega contract extension to ensure the safety of Tony Romo‘s blind side.
  • Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson – Did not have as many impact plays in 2013, but is a three-time Pro Bowler and legitimate No. 1 coverman at a time when big cornerbacks are in high demand.
  • Bengals middle linebacker Vontaze Burfict – Pre-draft character concerns which knocked him off draft boards and seem like a distant memory now. Burfict played at an elite level, leading the league with 171 tackles. If he behaves himself for another year, he’ll receive an exponential bump from his six-figure 2014 salary.
  • Titans defensive tackle Jurrell Casey – A stout run defender, Casey’s sack production jumped from 5.5 2011-2012 to 10.5 in 2013 when he was one of the most balanced interior defenders in the league.
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