Here's a look at some of the top rumors for Tuesday, Jan. 26:
Buffalo Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor is headed to his first Pro Bowl as an injury fill-in, but don't assume the team considers him its QB of the future. Bills GM Doug Whaley was asked by the Buffalo News' Tyler Dunne if he would consider drafting a quarterback in the early rounds this April, and Whaley "didn't flinch" in his response: "We'll do it because if you look at it, unfortunately we have two quarterbacks on the roster and both of them are entering the last year of their contract," Whaley told Dunne. "If it presents itself, it makes sense and it's a guy we like, and we believe in, absolutely." The final season of Taylor's three-year contract voided due to incentives reached in 2015, so Taylor will become a free agent after the 2016 season, and it doesn't seem like an extension is coming soon. The Bills know all too well the perils of handing a shiny new deal to an unproven quarterback. Halfway through the 2011 season, GM Buddy Nix -- with Whaley as his assistant GM -- signed Ryan Fitzpatrick to a six-year, $59 million extension ($24 guaranteed), only to release Fitzpatrick less than 17 months later. Now, it seems Whaley wants to see Taylor prove himself in a second season before committing to him, with the franchise tag as potential leverage. Buffalo holds the 19th pick in April's draft. At that slot, Memphis' Paxton Lynch, North Dakota State's Carson Wentz, Penn State's Christian Hackenberg and Michigan State's Connor Cook are the top QBs likely to be on the board.
The Philadelphia Eagles are wasting no time in fortifying their roster for the future. A day after signing tight end Zach Ertz to a contract extension, the Eagles could be nearing extensions with right tackle Lane Johnson and defensive end Vinny Curry as well, according to Ed Kracz of The Intelligence. Kracz hears from sources that Johnson could have a new deal by the end of the week, while Curry is "mulling" a contract offer from the team. Kracz adds that the team is negotiating with 2012 first-round pick Fletcher Cox, who is under contract through 2016 on his fifth-year option. It's clear that EVP of football ops Howie Roseman is working quickly to keep Philadelphia's best young players in place, and each of those mentioned should be around for years to come. Cox is the most talented and accomplished of the three, but Curry has quietly been very productive, posting 16.5 sacks in the last three seasons and grading out as Pro Football Focus' 12th-ranked 3-4 defensive end. At 6-foot-3 and 279 pounds, he should fit even better as a 4-3 end on the strong side of Jim Schwartz's scheme. UPDATE: ESPN's Adam Caplan reports the team has agreed to a three-year, $13 million deal, including $6 million guaranteed, with tight end Brent Celek. Busy, indeed, the Eagles are.
The New England Patriots will also have some decisions to make about contracts this offseason, though they don't have many key free agents. The Boston Herald's Jeff Howe suggests tackle Sebastian Vollmer could be on the chopping block due to his price tag ($6.2 million against the cap in 2016) and repeated trouble with ankle injuries. That would be a relative surprise after all of the issues the Patriots' offensive line had this season -- culminating in a 23-hit day for Tom Brady in Sunday's loss in Denver and the firing of OL coach Dave DeGuglielmo -- but New England could save $4 million against the cap with his release. Another interesting name Howe brings up is wide receiver Danny Amendola, who came up huge at times in 2015 but has never produced at a level worthy of the five-year, $31 million deal he signed in 2013. Amendola's cap hit climbs to $6.8 million in 2016 and $7.9 million in 2017. The team could save about $4 million against the cap by releasing him this offseason. On the extension side of things, Howe expects the Pats to prioritize linebackers Dont'a Hightower and Jamie Collins and defensive end Chandler Jones. The team picked up fifth-year options on Hightower and Jones -- both first-round picks in 2012 -- last year, but both players are set to be free agents after 2016. A second-rounder from 2013, Collins' four-year rookie deal also expires after next season.
For the second consecutive season, Green Bay Packers running back Eddie Lacy got off to a poor start, but he couldn't turn things around in 2015 like he did a year earlier. Head coach Mike McCarthy didn't mince words last week: "He cannot play at the weight he was at this year." In an interesting twist, TMZ Sports reports that "Lacy's people have been in touch with P90X creator Tony Horton" and that Horton has offered to personally train Lacy. It's unclear what Lacy's offseason regiment has included in years past, but the big back (he's listed at 234 pounds on the team's site) could probably benefit from having an intense and proven trainer guiding his workouts and eating habits.
When in shape, Lacy has shown impressive nimbleness for his size that has proven deadly in the Packers' screen game -- he had 427 receiving yards and four TD grabs in 2014. If the 2013 second-rounder doesn't get it together in Year 4, it seems likely he wouldn't be re-signed in Green Bay.
Arizona Cardinals cornerback Tyrann Mathieu had a terrific season in 2015, two years removed from an ACL tear that limited him in 2014, but suffered the same injury in Week 15 against the Eagles. This time around, Mathieu plans to take more time in his recovery from the tear, according to Darren Urban of the team's official website. "The first time I was kind of rushing it," Mathieu told reporters Monday. "I wanted to get back so fast, I didn’t come back quite how I wanted to. Now I want to take my time with this, so I can come back 100 percent and not have one of those 2014 seasons." The 23-year-old is entering the final year of his contract in 2016 but sounds like he wants to remain in Arizona long-term. "I think this is the perfect place for me," he said. "I wouldn’t mind spending the rest of my life here." As devastating as Mathieu's injury was -- it certainly affected the defense's performance down the stretch -- Cardinals fans should be thrilled to have a versatile, instinctive playmaker as a building block moving forward. With a more patient approach, perhaps Mathieu will get back to his old self quicker than he did during his last recovery.
As for a player who eschewed patience in returning from injury this season, Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant admitted as much on Monday. Bryant told Charean Williams of the Star-Telegram: "After I broke my foot and tried to come back, I knew I wasn’t [right]. But at the same time, I knew what was at stake. I thought I could potentially perform at a high level despite dealing with this foot. It turned out very unfortunate."
Bryant suffered a Jones fracture in Week 1 and returned in Week 8, but he clearly wasn't the same for the rest of the season. The Cowboys' top receiver followed it up with more surgery after the season on his foot and ankle. Optimism about Bryant's quick return for Dallas always seemed a bit misguided, and now the hope will be that his injury doesn't affect his future performance. Bryant still has four years remaining on a five-year, $70 million deal signed last offseason.
In other Cowboys news, Fox Sports' Mike Garafolo hears that former University of Miami head coach Al Golden "is in line for a defensive assistant job" in Dallas. With Jerome Henderson's departure to the Atlanta Falcons, the Cowboys have an opening for a defensive backs coach. Golden's background is on the defensive side, but his position-coach experience is limited to four years as a linebackers coach (1997-99 at Boston College and 2000 at Penn State).
Speaking of the Falcons, it appears they've made more changes to their front office. D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports the team is set to add former Chicago Bears GM Phil Emery to the scouting and personnel department, while Pro Football Talk reports former Tennessee Titans GM Ruston Webster will also join the Falcons. Emery was the Falcons' director of scouting from 2004 through the 2008 draft -- Dimitroff's first with the organization -- but he was then moved to a regional scouting position before joining the Kansas City Chiefs after the 2009 draft. In Kansas City, Emery worked as the team's director of scouting under GM Scott Pioli, who is currently the Falcons' assistant GM, until taking the Bears job in 2012. Webster is not closely connected to Dimitroff or Pioli through his experience, but with his addition, Atlanta would have four one-time general managers on staff. Last week, we discussed the Falcons' decision to part ways with director of player personnel Lionel Vital, who was one of Thomas Dimitroff's first hires in 2008. The front-office shake-up puts Dimitroff squarely on the hot seat after three straight disappointing seasons for the Falcons.
