While the Bills quickly extended Josh Allen for more than $250MM last offseason, another first-round pick from that 2018 draft class remains unsigned. Bills linebacker Tremaine Edmunds is heading into the final year of his five-year rookie pact, but there hasn’t been much reported progress regarding an extension.
Following a 100-plus-tackle season as a rookie and Pro Bowl nods in both 2019 and 2020, Edmunds seemed to be setting himself up for a sizable deal. The linebacker was still productive in 2021, but he finished with a career-low 108 tackles and only one QB hit. Pro Football Focus wasn’t particularly fond of his performance this past season, ranking him 61st among 87 eligible linebackers (although, for what it’s worth, the site has never been a fan of Edmunds).
2022 will ultimately be a key year when it comes to Edmunds’ earning potential. The 24-year-old was graded as one of the league’s better run-stopping linebackers, but he was among the worst in coverage, so an improvement in that area could good a long way in Edmunds securing a hefty contract. The linebacker’s coaches have also been focused on improving the player’s big-play ability; through 61 career games, Edmunds has four interceptions (half coming in his rookie season), two forced fumbles (both coming in his rookie year), and 5.5 sacks (including zero in 2021).
“I think – and he knows this – you want more splash plays,” defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier recently told Katherine Fitzgerald of The Buffalo News. “You want those big plays in ball games. That play he made against the Texans, the interception he came up with, that was a huge play in that ballgame. It really helped propel us along the way to a really good performance. And more plays like that.”
So what could Edmunds expect for his next contract? Two linebackers selected in the second round of the 2018 draft inked massive extensions with their teams. Darius Leonard got five years, $99.25MM ($52.5MM) from the Colts, but he’s firmly established himself as one of the top players at the position. Harold Landry signed a five-year, $87.5MM ($52.5MM guaranteed) deal with the Titans, but Edmunds hasn’t come close to matching Landry’s pass-rushing prowess. Either the player’s camp or the Bills could be waiting to see how negotiations unfold for Bradley Chubb and/or Roquan Smith; both linebackers were off the board before Edmunds in 2018.
If the LB franchise tag remains around $18MM next offseason, then that could be a logical route if the two sides don’t seem destined for an extension. The player is also set to make a bit less than $13MM in 2022. An extension worth $15MM per year seems to make sense from a financial standpoint, but it’d be a bit surprising if either side was willing to compromise on that number right now…the Bills could be eyeing a discount with the risk of paying $18MM in 2023, while Edmunds may not be willing to settle for a, say, four-year deal worth $60MM when he has the potential to make much more following a strong 2022 campaign.
Fortunately, while Edmunds may have to wait until the end of the season to sign his next deal, his head seems to be in the right place.
“Obviously, you think about it a little bit, but I can’t control that,” Edmunds said in early June (via Fitzgerald). “All I can control is how I come out each and every day, and just work. All that kind of stuff, you kind of just put it on the top shelf and do the stuff that you’ve been doing this whole time.”
Sue Robinson, the jointly appointed disciplinary officer in the Deshaun Watson case, began hearing from the NFL, NFLPA and Watson’s camp Tuesday. The league and the union entered the hearing at extreme ends of the punishment spectrum.
The NFL’s stance of a year-long suspension — or an indefinite ban that could extend beyond 2022 — has been circulated for several days now. The NFLPA is attempting to argue Watson should not be suspended, per USA Today’s Josina Anderson and the Washington Post’s Mark Maske (Twitterlinks). If Robinson rules Watson’s actions did not violate the NFL’s personal conduct policy, leading to no missed games, the NFL cannot appeal, Maske adds. That scenario has long been seen as extremely unlikely.
This gap led to settlement talks breaking off. Those discussions producing an agreement would have removed the appeal component from these proceedings. Absent a negotiated punishment, the sides are making their arguments to Robinson. The hearing has wrapped for the day, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. It is expected to continue Wednesday, Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports notes (on Twitter), and Robinson’s decision is expected this week. With a prime news-dump window Friday, ahead of a holiday weekend, it would not surprise if the initial Watson ruling came down then.
Although 24 women filed civil lawsuits against Watson over the past 15 months, alleging sexual misconduct and/or sexual assault, a Monday report indicated the NFL was planning to center its case on five of those accusers’ accounts. Two of the accusers were among the 10 women to make criminal complaints against Watson, Anderson adds (via Twitter). Neither the Harris Country nor Brazoria County (Texas) grand juries brought charges against the recently traded quarterback. Watson has denied all wrongdoing, but that has not stopped an avalanche of turmoil from engulfing him, the Browns and the Texans over the past three months. This probably being the NFL’s top offseason storyline has certainly not been a good look for the league.
Once Robinson issues a ruling, an appeal — from the NFL or NFLPA — can commence. The 2020 CBA changed league disciplinary measures, but the NFL handling the Watson appeal still allows for one side to wield a fair amount of power here. Roger Goodell can oversee the appeal or pass it along to someone else within the league’s power structure, USA Today’s Mike Jones notes (video link). While the NFL could opt to ensure Watson is shelved for the entire 2022 season via appeal, the league may not want to undercut Robinson’s decision — a historic case and the first to be heard by a neutral arbitrator.
Robinson meeting the parties halfway, via an eight- or 10-game ban or an indefinite suspension that leaves the door open for Watson to return this season, may have been more likely before the additional lawsuits and the expansive New York Times report detailing this saga surfaced in recent weeks. May’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel segment and the ensuing NYT story also led to the Texans being included in existing civil lawsuits and hit with a separate suit. That latest lawsuit also said “at least 30” women have alleged sexual misconduct against Watson during massage therapy sessions. Twenty of the initial 24 civil accusers settled with Watson, but the suit against the Texans leaves open the possibility more will come forward.
But with this being a restructured setup compared to the league’s major scandals during the 2010s, it cannot be assumed Robinson will lean toward a harsh ban. That said, Watson’s side, which has seen the quarterback’s off-field troubles escalate rather than die down since his trade to the Browns, has been expecting a significant punishment for a bit now. The initial decision should be known within days.
A brutal stretch to close last season doubled as one of the worst in the Giants’ 100-plus-year history. It turned Joe Judge from a coach likely to see a third season — after the franchise had canned its past two HCs (Ben McAdoo and Pat Shurmur) during or after their second years — to a pink-slip recipient. The conclusion of the team’s 4-13 season — its fifth straight campaign with double-digit losses — brought in a new regime responsible for reversing a longer run of struggles.
Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll, who helped the Bills morph from a team that missed 17 consecutive playoff brackets to a perennial Super Bowl contender, are now in charge of the Giants’ rebuild. Their offseason did not involve splashy free agency work, and cost-cutting measures ensued. But the team did identify cornerstone talent with a rare draft opportunity. Still, big questions exist ahead of the franchise’s latest relaunch effort.
Injuries wrecked Judge’s offensive line plan last season. By Week 1 of this year, as many as four new starters could be present up front. Glowinski and Feliciano are ticketed to be two of those. Coming off a successful tenure as the right guard for one of the NFL’s top O-lines, Glowinski will attempt to keep going into his 30s after his Colts work led to a midlevel free agency accord. Pro Football Focus graded Glowinski as a top-25 guard last season.
Despite the former Seahawks fourth-rounder only missing one game over the past three years and playing a key role in Jonathan Taylor‘s runaway 2021 rushing title, the 30-year-old blocker was unable to generate a big market. Quenton Nelson‘s former sidekick, however, should still have a couple of quality years left. Any sort of interior stability will be a change for the Giants, who have dealt with extensive injuries and underperformance inside since their Super Bowl-era O-lines splintered.
Feliciano, also 30, comes as a street free agent and clear stopgap measure. The Giants entered the offseason with so many needs it was impossible to allocate appropriate resources to filling each — especially considering the cap issues Schoen and Co. inherited. An ex-fourth-rounder like Glowinski, Feliciano has battled injuries in each of the past two seasons (15 absences in that span). But he did start 16 games for the 2019 Bills, establishing himself as a capable first-stringer after spending four years as a Raiders backup. Center could be an area Big Blue tries harder to address in 2023, but for now, Feliciano will be the team’s pivot.
Taylor is an upgrade over Mike Glennon, having been a Week 1 starter in six of the past seven seasons. Two of those years saw Taylor quickly replaced, and last season finished with Davis Mills usurping the veteran signal-caller in Houston. But Taylor has a much better resume than previous Jones backups Glennon or Colt McCoy. Given Jones’ injury history and ties to a previous regime, Taylor getting extended run this season should not be ruled out. Though, Taylor seeing the field often will both signal another plan gone awry and mark a precursor to a big QB swing in 2023.
It is interesting Schoen sought the ex-Buffalo starter, considering the current Bills regime ditched Taylor after one season — a 2017 slate that included a strange one-game benching for Nathan Peterman. But Taylor, set to play for a sixth NFL team at 33, is the only Giants passer signed beyond 2022.
Stature-wise, the Giants’ departures were far more notable than their additions. No place felt the cost-cutting effects more than the secondary, which lost its two most experienced players. Given a three-year, $45MM deal in 2020, Bradberry played well in his first Giants slate and worked as the team’s No. 1 cornerback during both his New York seasons. The Giants spent several weeks dangling the Gettleman-era pickup in trades and had a deal in place with the Texans, who nixed it because they sought a Bradberry extension as part of the swap. Bradberry’s eventual release and Eagles arrival creates one of the NFL’s thinnest position groups.
Adoree’ Jackson is a former first-round pick, whom PFF tabbed as a top-20 corner last season. The sixth-year cover man has still missed 17 games over the past two seasons and has never been asked to be a No. 1-type stopper as a pro. Beyond Jackson, the Giants have next to no experience on the outside. Aaron Robinson, a 2021 third-round pick, is the favorite to replace Bradberry. He played 268 snaps during a rookie season that featured an eight-game absence. New York’s slot outlook, featuring Darnay Holmes and third-round rookie Cor’Dale Flott, appears better. But Bradberry’s exit could be quite noticeable this season.
The deeper safety contingent the Giants used to start last year dissipated after Peppers’ early-season injury, but losing Peppers (now with the Patriots) and Ryan (Buccaneers) creates a void on the team’s back line as well. Ryan signed two Giants contracts in 2020, a late-summer free agency accord and a three-year extension worth $31MM on Christmas, and his March release did not save the Giants much. The team did get out of paying a $3MM roster bonus, but its safety corps looks similar to its corner array. Xavier McKinney, though, is a nice place to start. There is not much around him.
At least positional anchors exist at those secondary spots. Engram’s Jacksonville move leaves little at the tight end position. Injuries and inconsistency plagued Engram throughout his five-year Giants run, though there were moments (a 722-yard rookie season, a somewhat surprising 2020 Pro Bowl nod). This was not exactly the best time to be a Giants skill-position player. Eli Manning‘s decline, Daniel Jones‘ struggles, a run of play-callers — a list bottoming out with the team’s Jason Garrett–Freddie Kitchens 2021 setup — and generally bad O-line play hamstrung the Giants’ chain-movers. The Giants gave Akins and Seals-Jones league-minimum deals. The ex-Texans starter (two 400-plus-yard years) at this price could represent value, but cost aside, Engram-to-Akins (or Engram-to-whatever tight end starts) will bring a major talent downgrade in a crucial year for Jones. Tight end is certainly a long-term need.
Solder’s then-record tackle contract (four years, $62MM) in 2018 came a time when the team was desperate for an O-line cornerstone. That contract did well to ensure Gettleman’s front-five rebuild would never take flight. Similar to many Bill Belichick cogs who have departed for big money elsewhere, Solder did not fare well away from New England. The 6-foot-8 blocker was durable for the Giants, minus his 2020 opt-out decision, but never came close to living up to the lucrative deal.
The Glennon-over-McCoy decision may well have gotten Judge fired, with the HC’s dismissal being unexpected as late as January. The Giants oddly opted to move from McCoy to Glennon after 2020, despite the former helping them to an upset win in Seattle and being interested in staying. As McCoy capably replaced Kyler Murray last season, Jones going down with a more serious injury summoned Glennon. The 6-foot-7 passer completed less than 54% of his passes, finished with a 4-to-10 TD-INT ratio and lost all four of his starts. The Giants benched Glennon, bringing in Jake Fromm, who was at the controls for the two infamous quarterback sneaks from inside the Giants’ 5-yard line. That led to John Mara labeling the 2021 season’s conclusion the most embarrassing point in his ownership run.
In the common draft era (1967-present), only 20 teams have made two top-10 picks in a single draft. The Giants used their opportunity, one provided by the previous regime’s trade-down that gave the Bears Justin Fields, to tab two point-of-attack linchpins. The Gettleman-era Giants strangely did not pour many resources into its edge rusher spots, trading Jason Pierre-Paul and Olivier Vernonin consecutive offseasons. Schoen signaled a shift to a more conventional philosophy at this position by making Thibodeaux being his first draftee.
Although this prevented the Giants from having their choice of this draft’s tackle crop, with the Panthers taking Ikem Ekwonuat No. 6, Thibodeaux is a badly needed outside linebacker reinforcement. Thibodeaux finished his junior year at Oregon viewed by many as the draft’s top player, but pre-draft scrutiny related to his effort and attitude dropped the 6-5 edge to the No. 5 slot. Thibodeaux, who combined for 16 sacks in the Ducks’ two non-pandemic-altered seasons, will join 2021 second-round pick Azeez Ojulari as the Giants’ starters outside. DC Don Martindale said Thibodeaux was the top edge player on the team’s board, and although this is common post-draft language, the team is planning to use the ex-Pac-12 star as an inside rusher as well.
Passing on Ekwonu for Thibodeaux, it still looked like the Giants would nab Charles Cross, the player to whom they had been most closely linked during the draft run-up. Revealing something of a smokescreen effort, Big Blue picked Neal, a player rated above Cross almost everywhere. The Giants have struggled to staff their right tackle spot dating all the way back to Kareem McKenzie‘s Super Bowl-years stint ending in 2012. Various investments have been unable to stick at that post. Arriving two years after Andrew Thomas went fourth overall, Neal will give the Giants two top-10 picks at tackle and a potential long-term tandem.
Robinson put together a prolific junior season, catching 104 passes for 1,334 yards. That pick overloads the Giants with slot receivers, with Sterling Shepard and Kadarius Toney on track to return. With Kenny Golladay and Darius Slayton still on the roster, the Giants’ receiver situation could be dubbed a surplus. It could also be labeled a gaggle of unreliable performers.
Then again, New York wideouts have not exactly been positioned to succeed during the 2020s. The team ranked 31st in both scoring and total offense in each of the past two seasons. As the lone member of this quintet acquired by the current regime, Robinson will be the safest bet to be part of the 2023 Giants. Thus far, it looks like Slayton (two 700-plus-yard seasons) has the best odds of being traded this year. That said, the former fifth-round pick could be an insurance option for a Giants team that has a few contributors coming off injuries.
If Ezeudu can overtake incumbent Shane Lemieux, who is also returning from a severe injury, the Giants would have four new O-line starters. Even if Lemieux wins the preseason position battle, Ezeudu being acquired by the Schoen-Daboll duo points to a chance at an extended starter look at some point. The Giants lost both Lemieux and center Nick Gates to season-ending injuries early, and Gettleman-era draftee Will Hernandez is now in Arizona.
Injuries have continued to dog Shepard, who is now finishing off Achilles rehab. The longest-tenured Giant is the team’s lone holdover from the Jerry Reese regime. The former second-round pick has been productive in spurts and accepted a pay cut to stay in New York. Shepard, 29, is now attached to a $1.5MM base salary. The void year used to take a season off Shepard’s contract would tag the Giants with more than $4MM in dead money if the seventh-year wideout is not extended before the 2023 league year starts.
The Giants also used an injury to coax a pay cut from another starter, with Martinez accepting a slash rather than hit free agency coming off an ACL tear. Putting together four consecutive 140-plus-tackle seasons, including his 2020 Giants debut, Martinez is a key chip for a retooling Giants defense. The productive off-ball linebacker joins Shepard in a contract year.
Schoen’s work as Brandon Beane‘s right-hand man in Buffalo, assisting on one of the more impressive rebuilds in recent NFL annals, made him an obvious GM candidate. The former Dolphins exec who spent five years with the Bills comes in as the first outside GM hire for the Giants since Hall of Famer George Young in the late 1970s, separating this addition from the likes of Gettleman (who worked in New York extensively prior to his Carolina GM stint), Reese and Ernie Accorsi.
The Giants have gone a ghastly 22-59 over the past five seasons, with both Reese and Gettleman’s efforts bottoming out. Schoen will attempt to reach a Reese-level peak, but unlike when Reese succeeded Accorsi in 2007, championship-caliber pieces do not appear in place. This promises to be a lengthier climb.
A five-year Bills exec, Schoen sought familiarity. Big Blue’s HC hire came down to Daboll and Bills DC Leslie Frazier. The latter had head-coaching experience, but this is new ground for Daboll, whose pre-Buffalo time as an NFL play-caller did not go well. Daboll, 47, was OC for the Browns, Dolphins and Chiefs from 2009-12. Kansas City’s 2012 team infamously ranked last offensively, in a 2-14 season, ahead of Andy Reid reviving the team in 2013. Following that stretch, Daboll worked alongside Judge for four seasons in New England as a tight ends coach.
Josh Allen‘s metamorphosis from a raw talent with accuracy issues into a fully honed superstar thrust Daboll onto the HC radar. Daboll’s arrival should mean Jones will be better positioned to succeed, though the heavily scrutinized Gettleman pick has been trending downward.
Jones threw 24 touchdown passes in 2019 — fifth-most by a rookie in NFL history — despite Manning making three starts that year. He combined for 21 TD throws over the past two years and cratered with a career-worst 41.5 QBR figure last season. This and Jones’ 2021 injury made the Schoen-Daboll duo passing on a $22.4MM option unsurprising. Contract years often change careers, and Jones will have a better O-line and skill-position corps compared to his 2020 and ’21 groups. If Daboll proves a gargantuan step up from Garrett, then the Giants’ long-term QB plans may become Jones-centric again.
In 2020, the Giants deployed a strong quartet of interior defensive linemen. Two of those cogs — Dalvin Tomlinson and B.J. Hill — are gone, with Tomlinson signing with the Vikings and the Bengals pilfering Hill for Price (currently an unsigned UFA) in an August trade. The team gave Leonard Williams a monster extension, after two franchise tags, and now has Lawrence signed through 2023 (via a $13.25MM option). The most effective producer from 2019’s Odell Beckham Jr. trade, Lawrence can be kept on his rookie deal throughout Williams’ through-2023 extension. The new Giants regime can effectively determine how to organize their D-line payments next year.
The Giants interviewed Martindale, 59, for Judge’s job two years ago but will get the veteran DC on the rebound. The Ravens did not retain their four-year defensive play-caller, but prior to last season’s heavily injury-influenced descent, Baltimore sported a top-10 defense in each of Martindale’s previous three seasons. It will be interesting to see how Martindale’s blitz-heavy tendencies play in New York, considering the issues in the secondary.
Kafka, 34, will rise from the Chiefs’ No. 3 offensive coach to Daboll’s top lieutenant. Kafka rose to the position coach level in 2018, when Patrick Mahomes changed the Chiefs’ trajectory. While Kafka profiles as a future HC candidate, his lack of a play-calling role should keep him with the Giants for a multiple seasons. More importantly, the Giants securing a commitment from Daboll will ensure they do not lose their play-caller to another team during this HC tenure.
Giving Judge, Shurmur and McAdoo two or fewer seasons, the Giants are likely to keep Daboll into the mid-2020s, at least. The team held off on trading Barkley, giving the former superstar-tracked back an interesting opportunity to revive his career. This will be Barkley’s age-25 season, and although injuries have defined his past three years, the former No. 2 overall pick still represents the type of weapon Daboll did not have in Buffalo.
Schoen wading through troubled cap waters point to 2023 as a better gauge of where this operation is headed. For now, the Giants have assembled a more intriguing roster than they featured in recent years. It will be interesting to see how prior-regime cornerstones like Jones and Barkley fare as inherited Daboll centerpieces.
Amid an explosive offseason at the wide receiver position, another major domino is falling. The Commanders and Terry McLaurin agreed to terms on a three-year extension Tuesday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter).
Washington is giving its top target a contract worth up to $71MM, Schefter notes, with a receiver-high $28MM signing bonus (Twitter link). In terms of average annual value, the Commanders went to $23.3MM for the fourth-year standout, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets.
The Commanders are guaranteeing 76.4% of the contract, per Schefter, giving the Ohio State alum long-term security and the chance to cash in again in the not-too-distant future. While McLaurin will be protected against injury, the signing bonus represents most of his full guarantee. This deal includes $34.6MM guaranteed at signing Rapoport tweets. That figure ranks just 14th among wideouts, but Washington will add to that total with $12.5MM more becoming guaranteed in March 2023.
A lengthy negotiation that included McLaurin stepping away from the team’s offseason activities for weeks — headlined by a minicamp absence — keyed a resolution. This conclusion will certainly have a significant effect on the rapidly shifting wideout market. AAV-wise, McLaurin, 26, becomes the NFL’s seventh-highest-paid receiver. But the former third-round pick’s deal creates a clear divide between No. 7 and No. 8 (D.J. Moore, who signed a $20.6MM-per-year deal earlier this offseason). Considering McLaurin, Moore and Mike Williams (also extended at $20MM AAV this year) each have no Pro Bowl invites on their respective resumes, McLaurin scoring this deal represents a win.
By agreeing to a three-year accord, McLaurin will be signed through the 2025 season. He will turn 30 that year. Should the Commanders want to continue with McLaurin for the late 2020s, he could have the back end of his prime to factor into those prospective negotiations. For now, however, another of the 2019 receiver draftees has scored a big payday. Deebo Samuel, D.K. Metcalf and Diontae Johnson will be interested observers. Samuel and Metcalf figure to target A.J. Brown‘s Eagles deal (four years, $100MM), but McLaurin’s re-up figures to be of particular interest to Johnson’s camp.
Talks during the minicamp McLaurin missed failed to produce a deal, and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com notes (on Twitter) the two parties backed off for a bit. Tuesday represented the breakthrough. Ron Rivera expressed optimism for a 2022 McLaurin deal on multiple occasions this offseason, and the third-year Commanders HC added that the team would not trade its premier aerial threat. Rivera and GM Martin Mayhew stuck to those guns and have an intriguing receiver duo for the long haul. Both McLaurin and first-round wideoutJahan Dotsonare signed through 2025. Dotson can be kept through 2026 on a fifth-year option.
Washington did not receive much from Curtis Samuel last season, with injuries interrupting the former Buckeye’s D.C. debut. But the ex-Panther is tied to a hefty contract as well — three years, $34.5MM. The McLaurin and Samuel contracts, along with the team’s Dotson investment, represent a lofty commitment to the receiver position ahead of Carson Wentz‘s first Washington season. Wentz’s set of Washington weaponry certainly appears to outflank, depth-wise, the troops he played with in Indianapolis. Given the injury problems the Eagles dealt with at receiver during the latter half of Wentz’s Philadelphia tenure, Washington’s seemingly well-rounded trio provides an interesting opportunity for the 29-year-old passer.
Through three McLaurin seasons, Washington struggled to assemble complementary help for its No. 1 weapon. But the 6-foot target kept producing. McLaurin has averaged more yards per game than Metcalf over the course of his career (67.2) and is riding back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. McLaurin doing so with a host of quarterbacks — from college teammate Dwayne Haskins to a near-the-end Alex Smith to Taylor Heinicke — should give the Commanders confidence the production will continue with Wentz.
In trade rumors for three-plus months now, Baker Mayfield remains with the Browns. This relationship is heading toward the finish line, with the Panthers engaged in off-and-on talks with the Browns and the Seahawks monitoring this situation as well.
The former No. 1 overall pick left the door slightly ajar to a potential emergency-circumstance return to Cleveland — as Deshaun Watson braces for a potential season-long suspension — but this situation still looks unsalvageable.
“I think for that to happen, there would have to be some reaching out, but we’re ready to move on, I think, on both sides,” Mayfield said of a return to the Browns for his contract year, via Sooner Scoop’s Casey Murdock (video link).
Watson participated in the Browns’ minicamp, while the team excused Mayfield from the mandatory workouts. Mayfield requested a trade just before the Browns were out, then back in, on the controversial quarterback. The Browns are not looking to void Watson’s NFL-record guarantee sum ($230MM), and Mayfield has been expecting an exit for several weeks.
Mayfield’s fully guaranteed $18.9MM salary has led to this process dragging well beyond minicamp. While the Browns have moved toward paying half of that amount or slightly more, the Panthers have not given in yet. The longer the Browns and Panthers haggle over how that amount will be split up, Mayfield’s time to develop in Carolina’s offense condenses. The Panthers praised Sam Darnold‘s offseason work, and while a competition between 2018 top-three draftees may well commence in training camp, Mayfield’s limbo stay persists.
“I think I got frustrated with it not happening before minicamp and all those things,” Mayfield said. “But that’s the stuff that’s out of my control, and let those things happen and fall into place.”
Cleveland’s rearranging of its QB depth chart continued with a Case Keenum-for-Jacoby Brissett swap of sorts, with the former being traded to Buffalo on the day of the latter’s Browns free agency agreement. Brissett is being positioned to start in the likely event of a lengthy Watson ban.
“I think it’s pretty obvious the mutual decision on both sides is to move on,” Mayfield said. “I’m thankful for my four years in Cleveland. There’s a lot of ups and downs, and a ton of learning experiences that I’ll forever keep with me. … There’s no resentment toward the city of Cleveland by any means.”
After being one of the more hotly-debated draft picks in the 2019 draft, Rashan Garyis eligible for his second NFL contract. Considering the progress he has made in each of his three seasons with the Packers, he could be in line for a more substantial raise than many would have thought when he entered the league.
The 24-year-old spent three years at Michigan, after being one of the top recruits in the country. That led to significant expectations, but Gary didn’t put up the production many other top edge rushers were able to in his draft class in particular. His sophomore season was his best, as he totalled 58 tackles, including 11.5 for a loss, and 5.5 sacks. Overall, he recorded less than 10 sacks during his time in Ann Arbor.
That represented a major red flag for many in the build-up to the draft. PFF rated him much lower than many of the other pass rushers in the class, including his Michigan teammate Chase Winovich. Still, Gary represented a rare combination of size (six-foot-five, 280 pounds) and athleticism which kept him on the first-round radar. It didn’t come as a shock, therefore, when the Packers drafted him with the No. 12 pick.
That made Gary the fourth edge rusher taken off the board, taken behind the likes of Nick Bosaand Josh Allen. He heard his name called earlier than other, more accomplished college sack artists like Brian Burnsand Montez Sweat, however, meaning that he was once again entering the next chapter of his football career with significant expectations. The early portion of his NFL tenure didn’t put concerns about his high draft stock at ease.
As a rookie, Gary appeared in all 16 contests, but he didn’t register any starts. Seeing the field for just one-fourth of the team’s defensive snaps, he totalled 21 tackles and a pair of sacks. He saw a larger workload the following season, and responded with a step forward in production, with five sacks. Likewise, his PFF grade rose incrementally, leading to optimism for the 2021 campaign.
With Za’Darius Smith sidelined for all but one game due to injury, Gary took on a full-time starting role this past year. He thrived in it, posting 9.5 sacks and 28 QB hits en route to a top-five edge rush PFF grade of 89. It presented an interesting dichotomy with Winovich, who, after a promising start to his career in New England, failed to record a sack in 2021 and has since been traded to the Browns.
The aforementioned Smith left in free agency this offseason, as Green Bay turned its attention to extending fellow veteran Preston Smith. He and Gary are in line to start once again in 2022, meaning the latter will have the opportunity to repeat his performance from last season. Knowing that, it came as little surprise when the Packers exercised Gary’s fifth-year option, keeping him under contract for the next two campaigns. He will have a cap hit of just over $5MM in 2022, a figure which will jump to $10.9MM the following year.
If he is able to continue his career ascension, Gary will represent one of the better values at the edge rusher position in the league at that cost, as 17 players at that spot currently average at least $15MM per season. Given his relatively late blooming, however, it would be understandable for the Packers to wait at least one more year to begin serious extension talks. The team’s overall financial situation in the near future will also, of course, be an important factor in this situation.
The Packers have more cap space than most teams at this point with respect to 2022, after trading away Davante Adamsand restructuring a number of large contracts. However, the outlook is more murky beyond this coming season. Gary will need a new contract no later than 2024, by which point Aaron Jones, David Bakhtiariand Kenny Clarkwill each be entering the final (non-void) year of their respective deals. How the team handles those pacts will no doubt affect their ability to extend Gary at a significant rate.
Gary is aware of the importance of this season as it relates to his next contract. When speaking on the matter however, he said, via Sports Illustrated’s Bill Huber, “When it comes to money, that’s something I don’t worry about. I’m here to play football and I’m here to be the best player I can for this team.”
Still, he called a lucrative extension a “dream… But I’ve got to keep my head down and work and not look too far ahead or all this talk is just talk.”
Jarren Williamshas already been a member of two NFL teams and spent plenty of time on and off of practice squads during his brief career. He will be facing a new challenge in 2022, but it could help him land a 53-man roster spot in the fall.
The Giants are converting the former UDFA from cornerback to safety, as detailed by Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. Williams had been a corner throughout his college and professional tenure, but this new position will give him a better opportunity to avoid reverting back to the practice squad. New York is set at the top of the safety depth chart with Xavier McKinneyand Julian Love, but lacking in experienced backups behind them. Williams could slot in as a special teamer and rotational defender (to a greater degree than he did in his eight appearances at CB) if all goes well.
“It’s a great opportunity” the 24-year-old said. “I’m really excited, gonna keep learning the position, take the teaching, take the coaching and I think it’s gonna be good for me.”
Here a some other secondary-related notes from the NFC:
The Saints have a number of new faces on the backend of their defense, such as Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye, but another potential difference-maker could be a player who was already on the roster when the offseason began. In a breakdown of players who stood out in the spring, ESPN’s Mike Triplett names Bryce Thompsonas a candidate for a significant role in 2022. The former UDFA saw limited time on special teams as a rookie last year, but has been taking snaps with both the first- and second-team units this offseason. His positional versatility, Triplett contends, could land Thompson a notable role somewhere within the secondary.
In that same piece, John Keim notes that the Commanders are using 2021 third round corner Benjamin St-Justein the slot in practices. That’s a notable decision, given his size at six-foot-three, but the Canadian has “looked good” so far when lining up against receivers in that position, including 2022 first-rounder Jahan Dotson. St-Juste had a troubling issue with concussions in particular as a rookie, limiting him to nine games. With better health in his second campaign, he could be in line for a step forward in his new role.
One of the key storylines in San Francisco remains the short- and long-term future of Deebo Samuelwith the team. With spring practices now completed, attention is being turned to where things stand with respect to an extension for the All-Pro wideout.
Samuel was one of several extension-eligible players at his position who skipped voluntary workouts. However, unlike D.K. Metcalfand Terry McLaurin, he was in attendance for the 49ers’ mandatory minicamp, albeit in a way which didn’t involve any on-field activity. That has not only cooled the potential trade market which formed in the build-up to the draft, but also led to further optimism that a deal can be hammered out by the start of the 2022 campaign.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said, via ESPN’s Nick Wagoner, “I know we go through the business part of this league, but I don’t think the relationship was ever too far away to not get it back to normal, and I think we’re working on that.”
As a result, Wagoner adds that the possibility of a new contract being finalized in time for training camp “can’t be ruled out.” That would, of course, represent the best-case scenario for all involved, as it would eliminate the perceived need on Samuel’s part to stage a ‘hold-in’ during camp, and give the 49ers clarity on the financial situation of one of their franchise pillars, with Nick Bosaalso eligible for an extension.
Wagoner reports that San Francisco is “expected to continue working toward” a new deal with Samuel over the course of the next few weeks. Coming to an agreement will require bridging the gap between the 26-year-old’s original asking price and what the team has shown a willingness to pay him, of course, but progress on that front could be coming in the near future.
It’s no secret that Jeffery Simmons is interested in a new contract. The fourth-year defensive tackle staged a “hold-in” at the Titans’ mandatory minicamp this month. A “hold-in” is where a player attends the required sessions without competing in any of the drills. It’s meant to act as a hold-out without triggering any of the fines that would come along with not attending the required sessions.
Now both Simmons and the Titans’ coaches deny that the “hold-in” has anything to do with any contract issues. Titans head coach Mike Vrabelattributed his lack of participation to “the plan laid out by the team” in order for him to be ready for training camp, according to Terry McCormick of TitansInsider.com. Regardless, Simmons and Tennessee are going through the process of determining what the future holds for their union and it will likely require some negotiation.
Tennessee drafted Simmons out of Mississippi State with their first pick of the 2019 NFL Draft. Simmons had a slow start at the pro-level. A torn ACL suffered during draft prep kept him on the reserve/non-football injury list until mid-October of his rookie season. He promptly recorded a sack in his NFL debut, but only finished the season with 2.0 sacks, 4.0 tackles for loss, and 2 quarterback hits.
In his sophomore season, Simmons claimed his role as a full-time starter in the middle of the line, thanks in part to the departure of veteran Jurrell Casey to Denver. In his first full NFL season, Simmons showed improvement in his ability to apply pressure in the backfield with 14 quarterback hits, but struggled to convert those into strong finishes, only totaling 3.0 sacks and 3.0 tackles for loss by the end of the year. He did display a talent for batting balls at the line, a highly sought after trait for defensive linemen, recording 5 passes defensed in his second season.
2021 saw a breakout year for Simmons. Starting all 17 games of the newly-elongated season, Simmons recorded career-highs in sacks (8.5), total tackles (54), tackles for loss (12.0), quarterback hits (16), and passes defensed (6). Simmons was named a Pro Bowler and a second-team All-Pro.
While this was clearly a great season for Simmons, the best of his career, he still has a ways to go to reach the heights of the best athletic defensive tackles in the league. His pass rushing numbers are nowhere near those of the highest paid players at his position such as Aaron Donald, DeForest Buckner, or Chris Jones. Due to the room he still has to grow, it’s hard to imagine a long-term deal for Simmons reaching the heights of $20MM+ like the players listed above.
Hargrave had been drafted by Washington two years before Simmons entered the league. Hargrave ended up signing an three-year extension with an average annual value (AAV) of $13MM at around the same point in his career that Simmons is in now. While Hargrave’s best season wasn’t quite what Simmons’ is, Hargrave had put together two consecutively strong seasons that led to a bit of a shorter extension but still rewarded his talent.
Heyward had a few more impressive seasons than Simmons when he signed his four-year deal with an AAV of $16.4MM. The reason why Heyward is still comparable despite his superior output is that he was 31-years-old when he signed his contract. His advanced age likely caused a slight drop in his overall value.
Allen may be the best comparison for Simmons’ current situation. 11 months ago, Allen signed a four-year extension with an AAV of $18MM. Allen was 26-years-old when he signed the deal and had two strong seasons with very similar statistics to Simmons’ best year.
With the combination of Simmons’ production and the fact that he’ll turn only 25 next month, an attempt can be made to try and estimate what an extension for him at this point might look like. Considering that the Titans would probably like to hold on to Simmons and that NFL salaries are constantly inflating, a reasonable extension would look something like a four-year, $76MM contract. More generally, expect a three- or four-year deal with an AAV of $18-19.5MM.
Now a new deal is not immediately necessary. Simmons is heading into his fourth year in the league and, as he was a first-round pick, the Titans had a fifth-year option on his rookie-contract which they exercised back in April. Still, the Titans would like to secure Simmons long-term and Simmons would like to cash in on his best season to date, as he’s only set to make $2.2MM on his base salary this year.
Simmons doesn’t have an agent, but instead refers to a “team” meant to deal with his contract. “I’m not talking to (the Titans) about my contract. I have a team in place that, if it is my contract, they’re going to talk to whoever upstairs,” Simmons told McCormick about the negotiation situation. While his contract “team” handles his potential extension, Simmons will be focused on his on-the-field team.
“My job is to be a leader, be a player and not just on the field but in the weight room, the locker room, or whatever it may be,” Simmons pronounced. “I’m on the plan and I’m sticking with it, and I’ll see you guys in camp.”
Former Alabama star quarterback A.J. McCarron has created value for himself as a reliable backup quarterback in the NFL. When a job isn’t determined by consistent on-field production, it can be difficult to leverage new deals after an injury. After spending the 2021 NFL season recovering from a torn ACL suffered during the preseason, McCarron is ready to contribute again, according to Mark Inabinett of AL.com.
The last time McCarron really carried a team through a season was back in college. As a freshman at Alabama, McCarron sat behind senior Greg McElroy before taking over as a sophomore. With McCarron at quarterback for those three years, Alabama only lost four games. Over his collegiate career, McCarron had a completion percentage of 66.9% while throwing for 77 touchdowns and only 15 interceptions.
The Bengals used a fifth-round pick to select McCarron in 2014, intending for him to serve as a back up to starter Andy Dalton. He didn’t see any time on the field during his rookie year. A combination of the team signing free agent quarterback Jason Campbell before the draft and some shoulder soreness resulted in McCarron spending most of the year on injured reserve.
After the departure of Campbell the next year, McCarron beat out Keith Wenning and Terrelle Pryor for the backup quarterback position during training camp. When Dalton suffered a broken thumb late in the season, McCarron heard his name called. McCarron started the last three games of the season for Cincinnati winning two of them, which, with the assist of an 8-0 start to the season, was enough to get the Bengals into the playoffs as the AFC North division winner. McCarron started the Wild Card game for Cincinnati against the Steelers, as well, and was minutes away from giving the Bengals their first playoff victory in 25 years if not for a late-game rally by Pittsburgh.
When Dalton recovered and returned for the next season, McCarron reverted back to his back up role. McCarron was nearly the prize of a mid-season trade with the Browns, who intended send a second- and third-round pick in the following draft in exchange for the fourth-year quarterback. Unfortunately, the Brown failed to file the paperwork before the trade deadline and the trade never went through. McCarron then filed a labor grievance against Cincinnati claiming that he had been healthy enough to be removed from the non-football injury list as a rookie and that the season should count toward his accrued season total. He won the grievance and, as a result, became an unrestricted free agent the following year.
McCarron signed with the Bills and entered a quarterback competition with Nathan Peterman and then-rookie Josh Allen. McCarron was injured during the preseason and Peterman won the competition, before promptly being benched in Week 1 in favor of Allen. With Peterman and Allen set as the starter and back up, the Bills decided to get some value out of McCarron and traded him to the Raiders for a fifth-round pick. He spent the season backing up Derek Carr before being released at the end of the year.
McCarron signed with the Texans and ended up making a start in a season finale game, after it was determined that Houston would be locked in as the 4-seed. After two years in Houston, McCarron signed last offseason with the Falcons to back up Matt Ryan. The ACL tear in the team’s second preseason game would end his season prematurely.
In an interview on NFL Network, McCarron claimed that he felt great, saying that he “got cleared at four-and-a-half months out from surgery, so (he’s) just been working on the strength and getting everything back normal.”
“You never know what your future holds, what it is in this game,” McCarron said. “So I’m just ready, waiting for a call.”
As teams begin to go into camps, arms will certainly be needed. It’s hard to imagine that an eight-year veteran with plenty of practice and camp experience will have to wait very long for that call.
Following a 100-plus-tackle season as a rookie and Pro Bowl nods in both 2019 and 2020, Edmunds seemed to be setting himself up for a sizable deal. The linebacker was still productive in 2021, but he finished with a career-low 108 tackles and only one QB hit. Pro Football Focus wasn’t particularly fond of his performance this past season, ranking him 61st among 87 eligible linebackers (although, for what it’s worth, the site has never been a fan of Edmunds).
