NFL - NEWS & NOTES

Washington Commanders allegedly kept ticket revenue from visiting teams



According to Front Office Sports A.J. Perez, the Washington Commanders could be in more hot water over an alleged scheme involving ticket revenue sharing.

Perez's report says that the House Oversight Committee received information that alleges the team withheld ticket revenue that was supposed to be shared with other NFL teams.

"According to NFL bylaws, all teams are required to pass along 40% of ticket sales from each home game - minus ticket handling charges and taxes - to the league, which then disperses the funds to visiting teams," Perez wrote. "At least one person gave information in recent weeks to Congressional investigators that alleges the Commanders didn't pass along the full 40%, two sources with knowledge of the investigation told FOS."

As Perez states in the report, ticket revenues are one determining factor when calculating the NFL's yearly salary cap for teams.

The Commanders' most recent allegations of wrongdoing come after a report emerged Thursday that the House Oversight Committee's investigation went beyond alleged workplace violations and has now delved into the team's finances.


FOS' report alleges that the committee is now trying to confirm whether or not the Commanders used two books to track finances.

"At least one person familiar with the team's financial health was already interviewed by committee investigators, who are now exploring whether the Commanders used "two books" of financial information that paint different pictures of the team's money situation," Perez wrote.

Allegedly, the scope of the investigation includes looking into a debt waiver given to Washington Commanders' owner Dan Snyder by the NFL, possible deceptive accounting practices, and pay disparity between male and female employees.

YARDBARKER

 

This wasn't an earth-shattering signing, but it completes the bigger picture. They also signed Casey Hayward to start across from A.J. Terrell at corner. Adding another experienced safety in Marlowe gives them two veteran safeties and two up-and-coming safeties. Isaiah Oliver resurrected his career at nickel last year, and the team also drafted two corners.

The pass rush is still a mythical creature, and the offense has more question marks than The Riddler's costume from the '60s Batman series, but the secondary is already solid even before the draft.

 

Thinking over the RB situation, I'm wondering what role/skill set they would want another RB to provide. If I'm doing a mock GM simulation, I might look to get a mid-round guy with adequate blocking skills and at least some pass catching ability, but I'd really be looking more to the future than to this season in making that pick.

For 2022, Cordarelle Patterson, Mike Davis and Damien Williams should be an adequate trio, with Qadree Ollison hoping to prove himself and with practice squad prospect Caleb Huntley on the rise. If they do add another solid RB to the mix, great. Otherwise, I'd be happy enough promoting Huntley and seeing if he and Ollison can take playing time away from Davis and Williams. (Huntley was the UDFA that I liked last year. The main problem with him was that he lost nearly all of the 2020 college season. A year of practice squad time certainly helps, but he needs those game reps.)

The other thing they can do to help the RBs is to solidify the offensive line. Last year two potential starters (Matt Gono, Josh Andrews) got hurt in preseason so they ended up staying with Kaleb McGary at RT and pushing third round rookie Jalen Mayfield into starting duty at left guard. Gono signed elsewhere in free agency this year, so at the moment we're looking at Elijah Wilkinson as the main threat to unseat McGary. (I'd want to see what returning prospect Willie Beavers can do as well. I'd envision him as a candidate for the swing tackle role.) My thought is that if they can somehow grab an upgrade at RT, they could move McGary inside to guard and let Mayfield sit a year as a backup. Mayfield won't be abused by opposing DTs while he's on the bench, and McGary won't be torched around the edge when he's inside playing guard. I'm just not sure how they could get an instant upgrade at RT to make that happen (other than using the #8 pick, which might happen).

Of course, the really, really important thing they need to do for the OL is to settle on a blocking scheme and stick with it rather than changing systems or coaches every two years. That's been a problem for nearly two decades now. Personally, I hope they do NOT use the #8 on the OL until they do figure out the long term OL plan. And that might also mean figuring out the long term QB plan first - eg going with a mobile QB or a traditional pocket passer.



Offhand, I really don't know what caused such epic failure for Dimitroff with the pass rush. The free agent signings (Ray Edwards, Osi Umenyiora, Dante Fowler) have flopped just like the top draft picks (Peria Jerry, Vic Beasley, Takk McKinley). Even the better moves (mid-round prospect Jonathan Massaquoi) seemed to end up going horribly wrong (Massaquoi landed in Mike Nolan's doghouse and wasn't kept by the next coaching staff). It was just a long track record of pass rush plans that never worked.

 

Probably still go edge at #8 (just a hunch), but the O-lineman available in this draft are deep. Im guessing 6 could go in the 1st round. Lot of teams need o-line help... very important and high in demand.

I like Patterson a lot... he's turned into a real baller on the field... beefed up and I wish he was still in purple.

 

So far, Fontenot strikes me as being much closer to Rich McKay's style as GM than Thomas Dimitroff's style, and I'm very happy about that. McKay still doesn't get the credit he deserves among the local media and the fan base.

It looks to me like they're setting themselves up to go true BPA at #8, and I'm thrilled about that too. Other than a true starting-caliber WR, they seem to have every position covered with at least a stop-gap player. One reason I love that is that it doesn't telegraph what you intend to do. If you're trying to anticipate what Fontenot will do at #8 based on need, he could easily go QB, RB, WR, OL, edge, ILB or DT.

DB doesn't seem likely at #8, and it should be safe to project that he won't use the #8 to fill the need at long snapper or upgrade P or K. (It's Terry Fontenot, not Matt Millen.) But otherwise, everything appears to be on the table - including a trade in either direction.

 

Another piece added...

The Falcons have signed former Titans LB Rashaan Evans to a one year deal. He didn't live up to his first round billing in Tennessee, though he played better under Dean Pees (now Atlanta's DC) than he did with Tennessee's new defensive staff.

I'm not expecting him to become the next Jack Lambert or anything like that, but I love several aspects of this move: (A) he's on a cheap contract. (B) he's already familiar with the system, so he can be a plug-in instant starter if needed. (C) he's on a cheap contract. (D) he's young and still has strong upside potential. (E) he's on a cheap contract.


Atlanta is going to be one of the top 16 teams in the NFC this season. I guarantee it.

 

They might even be able to crack the top 32 in the league?

 

I'm optimistic!

 

Mulling over this Eagles - Saints trade... If you haven't heard, Philly sent #16, #19 and a 6th to New Orleans for #18, a 3rd (comp), a 7th, a 2023 1st and a 2024 2nd.

It's easier to digest if you split it into two simultaneous trades. The first one is Philly moving up one spot from #19 to #18, and in exchange they swap a 6th for a 7th.

The bigger one is New Orleans gets the #16 this year in exchange for a third rounder (a comp pick at the end of the round) this year, a first rounder next year and a second rounder the following year.



So... motivation? From the New Orleans side, they clearly wanted an extra first rounder right now, and they got it.

Was it worth it? The price may prove to be steep, because once again GM Mickey Loomis has been kicking the can down the road on the salary cap. The current projections are for the cap to rise around $20 million next year to around $220-225 million per team. But New Orleans already has $258 million in cap commitments for 2023 - on only 38 players. And they already added bogus void years to nine player contracts to get under this year's cap.

If they win it all this year or next year, it's worth it. Otherwise, they're simply mortgaging even more of their future as they'll be short a key draft pick each of the next two years on top of their ongoing cap issues.

From the Philadelphia side, the Eagles push a first rounder back by a year but gain a third now and a second two years from now. In the long run that's a net gain of two Day 2 draft picks.

Was it worth it? The special sauce is that the Eagles also have the #15. So they still have two mid-firsts this year, and now they'll have two firsts again next year and two seconds in 2024. The 19 for 18 flip is the most amusing part. By flipping their 6th down for a 7th, they make sure that both of their first round picks are directly ahead of the two now held by New Orleans. Eagles have #15, Saints have #16. Eagles have #18, Saints have #19.

To me this is a solid long term investment kind of move for Philly and a dice roll for N'awlins. Now both sides have to make sure they nail it with the players they select.

 

Big roll of dice there hope it works out for the Saints

 

Falcons agree to deal with Germain Ifedi



The Falcons are adding an experienced piece to their offensive line.

Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reports that the team has agreed to sign Germain Ifedi. It’s a one-year deal for the 2016 Seahawks first-round pick.


Ifedi spent four seasons with the Seahawks and made 60 starts during his time in Seattle. He moved on to the Bears for the last two seasons and made 23 more starts.

Ifedi has seen time at both guard and tackle over the course of his career. The Falcons have last year’s starters — left tackle Jake Matthews, left guard Jalen Mayfield, right guard Chris Lindstrom, and right tackle Kaleb McGary — back for the 2022 season, so Ifedi will either be trying to unseat one of them or serving as depth in Atlanta.

PFT

 

Bills extend Stefon Diggs’ contract



Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs had two years remaining on the five-year, $72 million contract. But when the wide receiver market exploded this offseason, it became clear that Diggs was going to want a raise sooner rather than later.

The Bills have given him that raise. Diggs agreed to a four-year, $104 million extension with $70 million guaranteed, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Adding those four years to the two years that were left on his old deal, Diggs is now under contract for the Bills for the next six seasons, making it highly likely that the prime years of his career will be spent in Buffalo.


Although the Bills could have told Diggs he was going to have to play out his existing contract, the reality is that the Bills view themselves as Super Bowl contenders this year, and they didn’t want one of their best players to be unhappy. Getting a deal done with Diggs now ensures that his contract isn’t going to be a distraction.

Diggs was traded from the Vikings to the Bills in 2020 and has made the Pro Bowl in both of his seasons in Buffalo. The Bills think Diggs and Josh Allen are going to be a winning combination for years to come.

PFT

 

And... this might be the missing piece for the OL that I referred to above.

I see Ifedi starting at either LG or RT. I'm guessing the coaching staff has LG in mind, but personally I'd take practice time to try the line with Chris Lindstrom at LG, Kaleb McGary at RG, and Ifedi at RT. If Ifedi can be an adequate pass protector at RT (doesn't have to be All Pro, just not a complete muppet), this might be a decent line.

 

Keanu Neal signing with Buccaneers, will return to playing safety

Keanu Neal is back to playing safety and he's back in the NFC South.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are signing Neal, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Wednesday. The team later announced the signing, along with the re-signing of backup quarterback Blaine Gabbert.

Gabbert, a former first-round pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars, has been with the Bucs since 2019 and re-joins a QB room that also includes Tom Brady and Kyle Trask.

Neal, who played five seasons with the Atlanta Falcons at safety, played last year with the Dallas Cowboys and converted to playing linebacker in defensive coordinator Dan Quinn's scheme.

Now, Neal is moving on from Quinn, who was also his head coach in Atlanta, and heading back to the NFC South to play for the Bucs.

Plagued by injuries last season, the Buccaneers' defensive backfield now has plenty of depth. Neal will join the recently signed Logan Ryan and Antoine Winfield Jr. at safety with Jamel Dean, Carlton Davis and Sean Murphy-Bunting at the corner spots.

Neal, 26, was a first-round pick of the Falcons back in 2016 and was immediately thrust into the starting lineup. He produced back-to-back 100-tackle seasons and earned a 2017 Pro Bowl selection. Injuries held him to just four games over the next two seasons and 2020 was his last in Atlanta.


In 2021, Neal rejoined Quinn in Dallas and transferred to linebacker, where he played in 14 games with five starts and tallied 72 tackles. It wasn't the greatest fit, though, as evidenced by his 35.9 Pro Football Focus overall grade.

So now, Neal's reverting back to safety with a team he knows well.

The Bucs have themselves another veteran and another top-tier defender.

NFL.com

 

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver D.K. Metcalf isn't going anywhere, at least for now. According to 94WIP's Howard Eskin, the Jets were reportedly eager to acquire Metcalf's services, so much so that New York was willing to part ways with the No. 10 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. However, Seattle declined the offer, making it known that the team isn't trading its star wideout. The 24-year-old finished last season with 75 catches for 967 yards and 12 touchdowns. He has proven to be one of the most impactful fantasy options at the position during his brief tenure in the league. However, with Russell Wilson no longer under center, his fantasy outlook isn't as promising.

Roto Baller

 

Texans, Brandin Cooks agree to contract extension



Brandin Cooks won’t be leaving Houston after all.

Just days after talk emerged that Cooks could be traded, the Texans and Cooks have agreed on a two-year contract extension, according to multiple reports.


From all appearances, the 28-year-old Cooks is now happy in Houston and looking forward to staying where he has been the last two years. Last year Cooks led the Texans with 90 catches for 1,037 yards and six touchdowns.

A first-round pick of the Saints in 2014, Cooks was traded to the Patriots in 2017, traded again to the Rams in 2018, and traded once again to the Texans in 2020. Now he’s off the trade block and set for Year 3 in Houston.

PFT

 

DeAndre Carter agrees to deal with Chargers



The Chargers are signing free agent receiver/returner DeAndre Carter, Ben Standig of TheAthletic.com reports.

Carter visited both the Bears and the Chargers this week.


Carter, 28, played all 17 games for Washington last season, making five starts. He played 505 offensive snaps and 157 on special teams.

In 2021, he returned 16 punts for an 8.4-yard average and 36 kickoffs for a 25.1-yard average. He also caught 24 passes for 296 yards and three touchdowns.

Carter played four games for the Bears in 2020.

He also has spent time with the Texans, Eagles, 49ers, Patriots, Ravens and Raiders.

Carter has played 60 career games, with 13 starts.

PFT

 

Report: Bears agree to one-year deal with CB Tavon Young



Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles seems to be burning the midnight oil when it comes to signing free agents.

The team has reportedly signed former Baltimore Ravens defensive back Tavon Young to a one-year deal on Thursday evening, according to Ari Meirov of Pro Football Focus. Young is the second reported signing of the evening, along with tight end Ryan Griffin.

Young was drafted by the Ravens in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL draft out of Temple. He quickly shot up the depth chart with a strong rookie campaign, recording two interceptions and recovering a fumble. The 28-year old has shown plenty of promise as a nickel corner, but has also dealt with numerous injuries throughout his career.

In 2017, he suffered a torn ACL during organized team activities and missed the entire year. After rebounding in 2018 that earned him a lucrative contract extension the following offseason, Young missed the entire 2019 season with a neck injury. He then tore the same ACL again during Week 2 of the 2020 season.

Young finally was healthy again in 2021 and worked his way back to having a solid season for the Ravens, earning the team’s Ed Block Courage Award before being released in March. He finished his Ravens career with 111 solo tackles, four interceptions, four sacks, and two touchdowns.

Now, he’ll have a chance to rejuvenate a Bears secondary that struggled mightily in 2021. As of now, Young projects as the team’s starting nickel cornerback.

PFT

 

Report: Melvin Gordon talking to Ravens about contract



Ravens General Manager Eric DeCosta said this week that the team could add a running back to the roster in the draft, but it appears that’s not the only avenue they’re exploring to improve their backfield depth.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the Ravens are in discussions with free agent Melvin Gordon on a deal. There’s no word on how close the two sides may be to an agreement at the moment.


Gordon ran 203 times for 918 yards and eight touchdowns with the Broncos last season. There was word of a possible return to Denver last month, but Gordon recently changed agents as part of his continued search for a new team.

The Ravens lost running backs J.K. Dobbins, Gus Edwards, and Justice Hill to season-ending injuries before the start of the 2021 season. All three are on their way back to health, but Gordon would give the Ravens a reliable option to turn to if any of the other backs hit snags in their return.

PFT

 

The Falcons have added another defensive back to their roster.

The team announced the signing of cornerback Mike Ford on Friday afternoon. It’s a one-year deal for the former Lion and Bronco.


Ford opened his career with the Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2018 and spent three years in Detroit. He was claimed off of waivers by the Broncos ahead of last season.

Ford saw almost all of his playing time on special teams in Denver after steadily moving in that direction over his time with the Lions. He had six tackles last season and has been credited with 55 for his career.

PFT