Tag: 2021 NFL offseason

Breaking down the 3 phases of the Texans offseason program

The NFL offseason program kicks off April 19. Here are the three phases of participation for the Houston Texans.

The NFL voluntary offseason program kicks off Monday, and the Houston Texans do expect some participation despite a report that the players have decided to skip them.

According to NFL Operations, here is a breakdown of the nine-week offseason program, which is entirely voluntary except for one mandatory minicamp in June.

“There’s only so much that we control, so, we’ll take advantage of whatever opportunities that we have, whether that’s virtual meetings, and then if we do have the opportunity to work with them on the practice field at some point, then we’ll embrace that opportunity when it presents itself,” general manager Nick Caserio told Houston reporters on a Zoom call April 16. “So we can only control what we can control.”

Here is a breakdown of each phase of the offseason program.

Texans expect ‘case-by-case basis’ for participation in offseason program

Houston Texans general manager Nick Caserio expects some players to participate in the offseason program on a case-by-case basis.

The NFL’s voluntary offseason program starts Monday, and new general manager Nick Caserio doesn’t see any difference between the 2021 post-lockdown version and the version from years past.

Caserio addressed the offseason program in a Zoom call with Houston media on April 16.

“This year is no different,” Caserio said. “It’s a voluntary program. So players have the option to participate in the program. So it’s a case-by-case basis and each player will make the choice that they feel is best.”

According to Caserio, NRG Stadium facilities have been open and available to Texans players, and “a multitude” have been using the weight room throughout the offseason.

“They come in the building, they test, they go in the weight room, they work out, they go through their process,” said Caserio. “So, again, whatever players are here that choose to participate, like that’s their choice and we are going to create as good of a working environment for the players as possible. So, when they come here, they feel comfortable, and they feel like they are improving as a Houston Texan football player, so that’s what our focus is going to be on.”

Texans players voted to skip voluntary workouts in solidarity with the NFLPA as the league and players union work to clarify offseason program participation.

Jets players won’t attend voluntary, in-person spring workouts amid COVID-19 pandemic

The Jets became the 11th NFL team to release a statement on behalf of its players, who want a virtual offseason.

While the NFL wants teams to attend voluntary offseason workouts in person starting on April 19, players on more than a third of the teams in the league have decided to opt out of those workouts because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

That contingent of teams now includes the Jets, whose players released a statement through the NFLPA on Friday explaining their decision to become the 11th team whose players who won’t attend voluntary workouts in-person:

Football is a labor of love for our men, who work year-round to stay in shape and prepare ourselves to perform at the highest level. Given that we are still in a pandemic and based on the facts provided to our membership by our union and about the health and safety benefits of a virtual offseason, many of us will exercise our CBA right and not attend in-person voluntary workouts.

We respect that every play has a right to make a decision about what is best for him and his family, and we stand in solidarity with other players across the NFL who are making informed choices about this offseason.

The statement didn’t specify which players will or won’t opt-out of the workouts, but it’s similar to what the 10 other teams said through other NFLPA statements. Those teams include the Steelers, Raiders, Giants, Browns, Bears, Patriots, Lions, Buccaneers, Seahawks and Broncos.

Team facilities were closed last year at this time because of the pandemic and all teams were forced to conduct an all-virtual offseason until training camp. The preseason was also canceled.

But even as cases surge in some states while vaccinations are rolled out, the NFL wants to get as close to normal as it can a year later. That includes full capacity stadiums during the regular season, which NFL commissioner Roger Goodell already said he expects to happen. The 2021 NFL draft will return to being in-person after being virtual last year.

The rest of the NFL offseason plan, as laid out by league spokesman Brian McCarthy, is broken up into three phases:

The first phase begins April 19 and runs until May 14 and includes virtual meetings, two hours per day at team facilities, limited access to weight rooms and no on-field drills or work with coaches. Teams will also be asked to do whatever they can to provide vaccines to players and staff.

The second phase will run from May 17-21 and includes virtual meetings and on-field, non-contact drills with coaches.

The third phase will run from May 24 to June 18 with full-speed, non-contact OTAs for 10 days, in-person and virtual meetings, and mandatory minicamp.

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WATCH: Sam Darnold celebrates Panthers trade

The former Jets QB didn’t look too upset that he was traded to the Carolina Panthers.

Sam Darnold is no longer a Jet — and he looks pretty happy about it.

Jordan Palmer, Darnold’s personal quarterback coach, posted a video on his Instagram story after the Jets traded Darnold to the Panthers for three draft picks Monday. Darnold didn’t seem too distraught in the video. Rather, he appeared jubilant to be leaving the team that drafted him third overall three years ago.

Considering how poorly the Jets built around Darnold, his excitement should come as no surprise. Now Darnold gets to join a team full of offensive weapons like Christian McCaffrey, D.J. Moore and former Jets receiver Robby Anderson, a great offensive line, and offensive-minded coaches in Matt Rhule, who the Jets almost hired before picking Adam Gase, and Joe Brady.

The Jets will look toward the draft to find their franchise quarterback, while the Panthers will continue to build around the Jets’ former franchise quarterback.

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NFL memo indicates it’s not anticipating all-virtual spring workouts

In a memo sent to all 32 teams, the NFL outlined its plans for spring workouts as well as for how vaccination will impact restrictions.

For fans eager to see players in pads and on the field this spring, some very good news dropped on Wednesday. In a memo sent from the league to all 32 clubs, the NFL said that teams should be ready to hold virtual meetings once offseason activities open on April 19 but that the workout program likely won’t be fully virtual like it was last season.

Teams are instructed to gather sufficient COVID-19 testing supplies, but that some restrictions (such as daily testing) will be relaxed or even eliminated altogether for players who have been vaccinated through later amendments to the protocol.

Though it seems vaccination will not be mandatory for players, the NFL is attempting to incentivize vaccination with the relaxation of some protocols for teams that reach sufficiently high levels of vaccination. These restrictions apply to meetings, meal times and the locker room. Because of this, the clubs have been told to compile lists of players that have been “fully vaccinated,” which is defined as being two weeks past a dose of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine or both doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.

Though COVID-19 is certainly still a concern for the NFL, this memo seems to be a good sign that things are getting back to normal sooner rather than later.

When can the Jets begin OTAs?

The Jets won’t get a head start in offseason meetings this year despite hiring a new coach in Robert Saleh.

The NFL’s offseason workout schedule is beginning to take shape a year after the COVID-19 pandemic forced teams to conduct everything virtually.

Clubs can start Phase 1 of their Organized Team Activities (OTAs) on April 19, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. That phase involves meetings between players and coaches. There are still a lot of details to be worked out between now and then, but it gives teams a framework to build on as they head into the 2021 season.

Typically, a team like the Jets, who just hired a new head coach, would have been able to begin this part of the offseason this week. But given the state of the pandemic and the uncertainty of the rest of the offseason schedule, it appears as though the NFL is leveling the playing field for all teams.

Pelissero went on to explain “there’s hope for practices this spring, even if meetings remain virtual indefinitely.” This is a stark difference from last year when all team facilities were closed until May 19 – well into the offseason and after the draft. It’s unclear if the preseason will happen, either, after the NFL canceled it last year, but NFL commissioner Roger Goodell did say he expects stadiums to open at full capacity for the 2021 season.

Jets’ free agent QB Joe Flacco to visit Eagles

It looks as though the Jets won’t bring Joe Flacco back in 2021 after his second offseason visit.

Joe Flacco might stay on the East Coast. 

A few days after the Jets free agent quarterback visited the 49ers, Flacco is heading to Philadelphia to visit with the Eagles, according to Pro Football Talk.

Flacco would play backup to presumed Eagles starter Jalen Hurts after Philly traded Carson Wentz to the Colts earlier this offseason. Flacco, a New Jersey native, threw for 864 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions in five games last year. He filled in for the injured Sam Darnold on two separate occasions and started four games, though he didn’t win any of them.

After two offseason visits, it looks like Joe Douglas won’t be keeping the quarterback he scouted during his and Flacco’s time with the Ravens.

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Corey Davis’ contract with Jets only guaranteed in first 2 years

The Jets agreed to sign Corey Davis to an affordable deal that doesn’t guarantee the third year of the contract.

Joe Douglas didn’t have to invest too much long-term money for WR Corey Davis.

Although the Jets agreed to terms on a three-year, $37.5 million deal with the former Titans wideout, only the first two years of his salary are guaranteed, according to The Athletic’s Connor Hughes. That comes out to $27 million. The Jets could then easily cut Davis after his second season in New York with just $600,000 in dead cap, per Hughes.

Davis’ deal cannot become official until the new league year begins on March 17 at 4 p.m. ET.

Hughes broke Davis’ deal down year-by-year to reveal a relatively affordable contract. Davis has a base salary of $7 million in 2021, $13 million in 2022 and $10.5 million in 2023. He has a total cap hit of $12.6 million in 2021, $13.6 million in 2022 and $11.16 million in 2023. He also has a $2 million signing bonus and a $5 million roster bonus due on the fifth day of the league year (March 22).

The deal makes Davis the 19th highest-paid receiver in the league, right above Nelson Agholor. It’s a good deal for a player who fits into the Jets offense well and can become a solid pass-catcher for New York.

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Jags GM Trent Baalke discusses free agency plans

The Jags general manager said the team would look to spend this offseason, but it will also be looking for value in free agency.

Jacksonville’s offseason strategy became a little murkier following the franchise tag deadline. The team elected to tag left tackle Cam Robinson in a somewhat surprising decision, likely taking it out of the sweepstakes for top free-agent tackle Trent Williams. Additionally, several Jacksonville targets, such as New York Giants defensive tackle Leonard Williams and Chicago Bears receiver Allen Robinson, were tagged by their respective teams.

Now, with teams allowed to begin negotiating on Monday and players allowed to sign those deals beginning on Wednesday, the Jaguars must decide how they’re going to spend their roughly $82 million in cap space.

Speaking to the media, Jags general manager Trent Baalke said the team is looking for value, but it also has priorities.

“We do, we certainly do,” he said. “We’re looking at a lot of different positions and a lot of different players and the key word there was value. We’re looking for value. That isn’t always the most expensive player. There’s all different levels of ‘like.’ When we say we like a player, to what level and what value do we place on him? So, that’s going to be critical as we build this team out moving forward is making sure we get the value of the position and the player correct.”

With the league’s official salary cap being finalized at $182.5 million, Jacksonville now knows exactly how much cash will be at its disposal. Baalke expects the team to be big spenders, but he also said he doesn’t intend to overpay.

“…we figured it would be somewhere between 180 [million] and 185 [million] and that’s what we planned on,” Baalke said. “As far as spending, we’re always going to look to push the envelope and spend to the cap on a three-year rolling cycle, whether you’re above or below, but over a three-year period hoping to spend to the cap. We have an ownership that’s willing to do that and we want to do that, so we’re going to use the dollars.

I spoke earlier about value, I think value’s critical. You have to get the value of the players right. Just like building a stock portfolio, if you get a bunch of overpriced stocks, you buy high and sell low, eventually that catches up with you. So, we want to treat the players right and value them correctly and bring them into the organization and give them the best of the best and that’s what we’re looking to do.”

The Jaguars have their work cut out for them ahead of the draft in building a solid starting foundation for quarterback Trevor Lawrence, but they certainly have the capital to make it happen. The question now will be if Baalke and Co. can make the right free agency decisions.

NFL franchise tag: Tracking every player and grading every deal

It’s franchise tag day in the NFL! We’re tracking and analyzing every decision.

Deadlines spur action and today we have our first big deadline on the NFL offseason: Tuesday is the last day for teams to place the franchise tag on players before they get to free agency.

For the Win will be tracking every franchise tag decision and offering analysis on every move.

Here are the 2021 franchise tag values for each position, via Over The Cap:

Quarterback: $24.1 million
Running back: $11.1 million
Wide receiver: $16.4 million
Tight end: $10.2 million
Offensive line: $14.5 million
Defensive end: $17.8 million
Defensive tackle: $14.2 million
Linebacker: $15.7 million
Cornerback: $15.3 million
Safety: $11.2 million
Kicker/punter: $4.8 million

The values change if a player is being tagged for a second or third time and there are different versions of the tag that could also affect the values. We’ll be sure to specify which tag each player is being hit with and how much it’ll cost their teams in 2021.

We’ll be updating this as moves are announced, so stay tuned!