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Falcons have the 14th hardest Schedule this season, facing NFC South teams twice, NFC West, AFC East, and Packers and Redskins.
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Rotoworld
Bills released SS George Wilson.
The move clears $2.9 million in base salary off the books, bringing Buffalo's total Monday savings to $6.4 million when combined with WLB Nick Barnett's release. Pro Football Focus graded Wilson as the No. 8 safety in the entire league in 2012, but the new Bills coaching staff obviously didn't regard him as highly. Wilson turns 32 this offseason. He can still cover and fills hard in run support, so he should have a good chance to land on his feet.Bills released WLB Nick Barnett.
The move clears Barnett's $3.5 million base salary off the books and frees up just over $3 million in cap room. Barnett turns 32 in May, but graded out as a top-ten 4-3 outside linebacker in Pro Football Focus' 2012 ratings and should have some gas left in the tank. He's also "scheme versatile," having played in both 3-4 and 4-3 schemes. We suspect Barnett will find a starting job in 2013.Comment
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The Falcons continue to push for a new retractable-roof venue in Atlanta. Team president and CEO Rich McKay told the Atlanta City Council on Wednesday that, absent such a deal, the Falcons will look for other opportunities in the Atlanta metropolitan area.
Via John Manasso of FOXSportsSouth.com, McKay said the Falcons have no interest in extending their Georgia Dome lease, which expires after the 2017 season.
“We just don’t believe it makes any sense,” McKay told City Council regarding staying in the stadium that opened in 1992.
If sufficient public money isn’t contributed to a multi-use domed stadium with a sliding lid, the Falcons could build their own open-air venue elsewhere. “That’s just a reality as our lease is going to end and we could do it for a lot less cost,” McKay said of a possible move to one of the various communities surrounding Atlanta. “I hope you understand we have tried to make it an opportunity for Atlanta. It’s not a demand-or-else-project.”
Owner Arthur Blank prefers to stay in downtown Atlanta. A new stadium with a roof could also help lure another Super Bowl back to Atlanta.
So while the Falcons wouldn’t move to a new town, they could end up moving somewhere else before the end of the decade.Comment
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A day after saying he still wanted to play in the NFL despite the Bears terminating his contract, Johnny Knox has decided to retire.
Knox told Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times that he has to face the reality that he still has trouble walking — and isn’t even close to being able to run with the speed of an NFL wide receiver — more than 13 months after suffering a devastating back injury. As a result, Knox said, he is trying to make peace with the fact that he will never play football again.
“As an athlete, you don’t want to give up, you want to keep on fighting. That’s how I’ve always been,” Knox said. “But it’s been on my heart for a while. I know how my body feels, and I know I’m not going to be the same and perform at the ability that I used to. So I’m moving on and going forward.”
Knox’s body bent backward in gruesome fashion when he was injured in a December 2011 game against the Seahawks, and as sad as he is not to be able to fully recover, he also realizes how much worse it could have been.
“I was centimeters away from being paralyzed, so just sitting here and talking, I’m appreciative of that,” Knox said. “Just the hard work that I had to put in. Just to be able to stay in and do everything in my daily life that I used to do.”
Knox said he has been down at times, but he’ll remain an upbeat person.
“My whole life, I’ve always been positive, and people ask me, ‘Man, why are you so positive?’ But I know things will work out for the best,” Knox said.
We wish Knox well as he leaves professional football at the age of 26.Comment
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Eagles signed Dennis Dixon to a 2 year deal.Comment
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Rotoworld
The Indianapolis Star's Bob Kravitz reports that the Colts will not re-sign free agents Dwight Freeney and Austin Collie.
We already knew Freeney wouldn't be back. The "news" is Indianapolis' decision to part with Collie, who is coming off a ruptured right patellar tendon in addition to several previous concussions. One Colts source told Kravitz that, "If Collie had come along the same time as (Peyton) Manning, and had stayed healthy, he would have put up Welker like numbers." We wouldn't be surprised to see Collie reunite with Manning in Denver, replacing Brandon Stokley at slot receiver.Comment
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the Knox injury looked so much worse. He is so lucky. I was like how the fuck did he not die when I watched it live.Comment
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Doesn't Collie have Al Toon concussion-itis at this point?Comment
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Though the salary cap won’t be spiking this year (and, despite the looming impact of the new TV deals, in any year), this year’s smoothing will be a little less smooth that previously believed.
A source with knowledge of the situation tells PFT that the team-by-team spending limit will exceed $122 million in 2013.
While a move to $122 million represents an increase of only $1.4 million per team, every dollar helps, given the number of teams in cap trouble.
An increase in the unadjusted cap also increases the per-team minimum spending requirement, which commences this year. On a four-year rolling average, teams must spend in cash 89 percent of the annual unadjusted cap.
Last year, the teams and the league had to borrow against future years’ cap space to ensure that the spending limit would not decrease. It’s unknown whether any similar robbing-Peter-to-pay-Paul will occur in 2013.Comment
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Rotoworld
Chiefs released WR Steve Breaston.
The Chiefs also released TE Kevin Boss. Signed to a five-year, $22.55 million deal after the lockout, Breaston posted a 61/785/2 line in 2011 before mysteriously landing in former coach Romeo Crennel's doghouse last season. Breaston was a healthy scratch six times down the stretch, and caught just seven passes in 10 games. That, coupled with the fact that he'll turn 30 in August should limit Breaston's market, but he'll still get a chance to latch on somewhere in camp provided he's healthy. Breaston's previously troublesome right knee wasn't an issue during his two seasons in Kansas City.Comment
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Whats up with Tebow?Comment
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Rotoworld
Titans agreed to terms with SS George Wilson on a two-year, $4 million contract with $1 million more available in incentives.
Wilson's signing comes 11 days after he was released by the Bills. The eight-year veteran also visited the Lions, but was otherwise greeted by a soft market. 32-year-old Wilson's best days are behind him, but he remained an above-average run stopper in 2012, and held his own in coverage. The money is also on the team-friendly side for Tennessee, picking up a good player on the cheap. Wilson's addition signals the end of Tennessee's Jordan Babineaux experiment.Tom Pelissero of ESPN Twin Cities "heard" at the Combine that free agent Greg Jennings is seeking $14 million a year.
$14 million annually would make Jennings the NFL's third highest paid wide receiver behind Calvin Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald. No one is going to pay that much for an injury-prone wideout entering his age-30 season. Per Pelissero, there is a "popular theory" among NFL front offices that wide receivers will "sit on the market" like inside linebackers did last year. In other words, they may price themselves out of the initial wave of free agency.GM Reggie McKenzie says Taiwan Jones will likely move from running back to cornerback this season.
McKenzie says it best fits Jones' "skill set." Jones played both positions during his college career at Eastern Washington, but he hasn't played corner since 2008. Jones couldn't get on the field last year as a running back, even when Oakland was banged up in the backfield. The transition will be a huge project.Owner John Mara said at the Combine that the Giants intend to sign both Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks to long-term deals.
Cruz is a 2013 restricted free agent, and Hakeem Nicks is entering a contract year. "They’re both priorities for us," Mara insisted. "They’re both terrific players. We hope they’re both Giants for a long time." Mara also vehemently disputed an ESPN report that the Giants have prioritized Nicks over Cruz: "I don’t know where that came from; that’s not true at all. They’re both priorities for us."According to Yahoo! Sports, Jimmy Graham could seek up to $12 million annually on his next contract.
A league source tells Jason Cole that Graham is keeping a close eye on the Jared Cook case in Tennessee where he's staring at the franchise tag. The franchise number for tight ends is $6 million, while the franchise number for a wide receiver is just north of $10 million. Cook is expected to seek the receiver money if he indeed is tagged, and it's "important" to Graham that Cook wins that fight. Both Cook and Graham line up more in the slot than on the line. Graham is entering the final year of his rookie deal, and he's due just $1.323 million.Comment
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Jennings is insane if he thinks he'll get a deal like that.Comment
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