NFL News

[Futureshock]

Browns Unlikely To Re-Sign Rashard Higgins


March 4th, 2022 at 11:06am CST by Zachary Links

The Browns are expected to part ways with wide receiver Rashard Higgins, according to sources who spoke with Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Nothing’s official yet, but that’s the likely outcome as the Browns look ahead to free agency later this month. Cabot also hears that defensive tackle Malik McDowell is trending towards a non-tender.

[RELATED: Browns Won’t Extend Mayfield This Offseason]

The 2016 fifth-round pick has spent his entire career in Cleveland, appearing in 82 regular season games in parts of six seasons. The wideout had one of his best seasons in 2020, hauling in 37 receptions for 599 yards and four touchdowns. In 2021, he finished with just 24 grabs for 275 yards and one touchdown in 15 games. All in all, the 27-year-old has collected 137 career receptions for 1,890 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Higgins re-upped with the Browns last year on a one-year, $2.37MM deal. He likely could have fetched a similar contract in 2021 but, this time around, he’d be looking at a much softer market.

Just a year ago, the Browns figured their receiving corps was set for years to come with Higgins backing top targets Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry. Now, OBJ is in Los Angeles following a messy divorce and Landry profiles as a potential release candidate. The five-time Pro Bowler has one year left on his deal with a 2022 cap hit of $16.4MM — cutting him would clear the bulk of it with just $1.5MM in dead money remaining. A restructuring is also possible, though they’d have to furnish Landry with more in the way of guarantees.

In other Browns news, the team is reportedly willing to keep tight end David Njoku off the market with a ~$10MM/year deal.

[Futureshock]

Latest On Mitchell Trubisky’s Market


March 3rd, 2022 at 10:09pm CST by Ben Levine

Mitchell Trubisky may not be destined for a future career as a backup after all. According to Tony Pauline of ProFootballNetwork.com, Trubisky “is creating a lot of buzz,” and teams are pursuing the QB “with the expectation he’ll compete for a starting spot.”

The 2017 second-overall pick wore out his welcome with the Bears following four inconsistent seasons. Thanks in part to the roller-coaster regular seasons, his 0-2 playoff record, and his label as a draft bust (especially when you consider that the two other first-round QBs were Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson), Trubisky had to settle for a backup gig in Buffalo in 2021. He really only saw stints in garbage time, completing six of eight passes attempts for 75 yards.

While Trubisky isn’t a sexy name, you can still see the semblance of a capable quarterback when you squint. He had a 29-21 record as a starter, and he tossed 64 touchdowns vs 37 interceptions during his four years in Chicago. Any suitors surely wouldn’t guarantee Trubisky a starting gig, but he would make sense to pair with a rookie or unproven young player.

So which teams will have interest in the 27-year-old? Pauline previously reported that the Steelers would make a run at the quarterback, and one source told the reporter that Pittsburgh “would be a great fit.”

[Futureshock]

HA!


To absolutely no surprise, Kirk Cousins won’t give Vikings a discount

Posted by Mike Florio on March 4, 2022, 11:32 AM EST

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Some news is so obvious that it’s not news. This nugget falls into that category.

Chad Graff of TheAthletic.com reports that conversations in Indianapolis suggest that quarterback Kirk Cousins “isn’t going to offer any sort of hometown discount to stay with the Vikings.”

Of course he isn’t. He’s never taken a discount on any contract he ever has signed. And that’s his right.

He played for Washington in 2016 and 2017 under the franchise tag, refusing to accept long-term offers that didn’t reflect the value he received by cashing out two tags and then becoming a free agent in 2018.

His most shrewd move came in 2020, when Cousins signed an extension that left him with a $35 million fully guaranteed salary in 2022. The $45 million cap number, given that Cousins has twice been tagged before, puts him in line for a 44-percent raise and a one-year $64.8 million franchise-tag salary for 2023, or a $54 million transition-tag salary for 2023.

This means that the Vikings can’t, as a practical matter, keep him from becoming a free agent in 2023. And so Cousins will try to parlay a season with new coach Kevin O’Connell into the kind of campaign that persuades some other team to believe that Cousins deserves a massive payday — despite his overall lack of playoff appearances or postseason success.

Again, Cousins has every right to work the system for every last dollar. As long as there are teams willing to pay him huge money to lead their franchises to outcomes slightly above mediocrity, it will continue.

The Vikings seem to be content to let Cousins give it one more try, unless they can find a quarterback-desperate team that is willing to absorb his $35 million salary and give the Vikings real value in return. Even then, the Vikings would have to be confident that they have a better alternative. While Cousins isn’t among the best quarterbacks in the NFL, the best quarterbacks in the NFL aren’t readily available.

Unless, of course, Tom Brady decides that his next career stop should be not the team from the area where he grew up, but the team from his mother’s home state.

[Futureshock]

Texans “certainly open” to re-signing Justin Reid

Posted by Charean Williams on March 3, 2022, 8:36 PM EST

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Justin Reid recently said he’s “not opposed to the idea of staying” with the Texans. The Texans are not opposed to re-signing the safety.

Texans General Manager Nick Caserio said he has talked with Reid’s representation and is “certainly open” to bringing back Reid, Brooks Kubena of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Reid, 25, becomes a free agent March 16, having played out his four-year, $5.4 million rookie deal. He has made 53 career starts and has totaled 315 tackles, seven interceptions, 23 pass breakups, two sacks and two forced fumbles.

“Justin’s a good player,” Caserio said. “I think he’s well thought of in the league. I know he has a lot of respect from Lovie (Smith), had an opportunity to kind of play in a new system. I think more than anything, he’s had a lot of change over his career. So, if he has an opportunity to come back here, it’s another year in the same system.”

Reid played for three defensive coordinators in four seasons.

[Tom]

Barkley behind our line could be really special but considering his injury history, I wouldn’t give up much.

[Cody_Russell]

Cross off Orlando Brown Jr. as an option for the Jaguars. I’ll love the Saints if they somehow tag Armstead and work magical accounting voodoo on their cap situation.
We’re about to see a storm of NFL news hit us in the coming days regardless…

[Futureshock]

Barkley behind our line could be really special but considering his injury history, I wouldn’t give up much.

AND he's owed $7 mil/yr. Hard pass

[Futureshock]

Mike Mayock has had “exploratory talks” with NFL Network and Amazon

Posted by Mike Florio on March 7, 2022, 12:34 PM EST

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More than a decade after being named the SI.com Sports Media Person of the Year, Mike Mayock currently isn’t employed in sports media at all. That could be changing.

Mayock, who served as the General Manager of the Raiders for three years, has had “exploratory talks” with NFL Network and Amazon, according to Richard Deitsch of TheAthletic.com. However, a return by Mayock to NFLN is regarded as “highly unlikely.” Deitsch also adds that there is nothing imminent.

Amazon becomes an intriguing option, given that it hopes to construct a broad complement of shows that enhance, and lend credibility to, its Thursday Night Football venture.

Mayock once served as both the top draft expert at NFL Network and as the analyst for Thursday Night Football. His penchant for football jargon at times undermined his in-booth work, but he was unmatched with his knowledge and presentation as the league’s official draftnik. He also has a compelling story, trading out a career in commercial real estate for a bust-your-ass-in-the-shadows commitment to his craft that paid off, handsomely.

He’ll potentially be hampered by the perception that he failed as the G.M. of the Raiders. However, Mayock wasn’t really calling the shots. Former coach Jon Gruden was; Mayock was setting the table. How many of the picks that didn’t work out were Mayock selections, and how many were Gruden’s guys? We may never know.

What we do know is that Mayock did an outstanding job under trying circumstances in 2021, holding things together after Gruden’s abrupt resignation, sparked by emails he sent years earlier to former Washington executive Bruce Allen. Mayock and interim coach Rich Bisaccia arguably deserved a chance to show what they can do. Owner Mark Davis opted not to do that; it’s his prerogative. But Mayock can be proud of what he did with the Raiders, and the broader coverage of the NFL isn’t complete without his voice.

It sounds as if he’s moving in that direction. Eventually, he’ll resurface. The first step is seeing reports that he’s considering it. Deitsch’s report checks that box.

[Mainevent]

Apparently Packers have offered A-a-ron a longer term mega contract that would make him the highest paid player. Here comes the cap magic. No details available, but it's got to be something like 4 years/$200M.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...et-source-says

[Futureshock]

MATTHEW STAFFORDQB, LOS ANGELES RAMS
The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue reports Matthew Stafford could get as much as $45 million per year in new contract with the Rams.


Piecing together a new deal for Stafford is a "priority" for the Rams this offseason, according to Rodrigue, and could dictate what the team does in free agency. Rodrigue said league sources expect a new contract for Stafford, 34, to be in the three to four year range. If Stafford lands the $45 million per year, he would be paid around the same as Kirk Cousins. The Rams appear more than happy to reward the Super Bowl-winning quarterback.

SOURCE: The Athletic
Mar 7, 2022, 12:03 PM

[The King]

Ridley suspended ALL of next season due to gambling. Tough loss for ATL.

[Futureshock]

Holey moley

[Tom]

So was the mental health “break” just BS?

[edindetroit]

So was the mental health “break” just BS?

You can bet on it.

[dpatnod]

MATTHEW STAFFORDQB, LOS ANGELES RAMS
The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue reports Matthew Stafford could get as much as $45 million per year in new contract with the Rams.


Piecing together a new deal for Stafford is a "priority" for the Rams this offseason, according to Rodrigue, and could dictate what the team does in free agency. Rodrigue said league sources expect a new contract for Stafford, 34, to be in the three to four year range. If Stafford lands the $45 million per year, he would be paid around the same as Kirk Cousins. The Rams appear more than happy to reward the Super Bowl-winning quarterback.

SOURCE: The Athletic
Mar 7, 2022, 12:03 PM

Yep, there he goes. Banking off of padding his Superbowl Stats. Throwing two interceptions just so that, of course a late drive with a bunch of yards is needed to get past 0.500 in playoff wins, and finally beat a winning team. What a loser..

A real player would average in the sweet spot of like 6 - 8 yards per play. These big gainers aren't for winners. Sure, they're exciting, but I mean if you take away all the plays of more than 5 yards, does he beat Peyton Manning in a wheelchair. I don't think so. Enough said.