Daily Slop – 15 Mar 24: Commanders free agents “aren’t sexy signings, but they’re smart infrastructure pieces”

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Washington Post (paywall)

Commanders trade QB Sam Howell to Seahawks

Washington sent a fourth-round pick (No. 102) and a sixth-round pick (No. 179) to Seattle and received selections in the third round (No. 78) and fifth round (No. 152).

The trade gives Washington six of the top 100 selections — Nos. 2, 36, 40, 67, 78 and 100 — which will help the team continue to overhaul the roster or, should it want, try to cut another deal in the draft.

The arrival of General Manager Adam Peters and a new coaching staff led by Dan Quinn set in motion a complete roster overhaul that began in earnest Monday, when the NFL’s open negotiating period began. The Commanders have since agreed to terms with 14 new free agents and re-signed three of their own, all with the intent of addressing positions of need and providing veteran leadership; most of the free agent deals were for one or two years.

The Athletic (paywall)

Commanders move on from Sam Howell as new regime builds roster to fit its vision

The one constant in Sam Howell’s two seasons with the Washington Commanders was that nobody agreed on his value — at least not until general manager Adam Peters arrived.

Quarterbacks rule the NFL. This is why, despite adding enough incoming players during the opening week of free agency to cast the next “Ocean’s Thirteen” flick, we’re focusing on the one the Commanders traded away. Washington dealt Howell, the team’s 2023 starter, along with a fourth- and sixth-round selection in April’s draft to the Seattle Seahawks for third- and fifth-round picks.

That’s a solid practical and net gain for a player the league let slide to the fifth round, 144th overall, in the 2022 draft. The famous Jimmy Johnson trade chart and others show Washington received the equivalent of a late third/early fourth-round pick in return. The third-round selection, No. 78, means the rebuilding Commanders have six picks in the top 100 and nine overall. With that haul, Peters can do some damage toward fixing the long-term roster.

“We were sweating it out,” Seahawks general manager John Schneider said during an interview with Seattle Sports following the trade. “There were several teams involved. … He’s a quarterback, but he’s really a football player. That’s what I love about him.”

Those who have a lasting memory of the role Howell played as Washington unraveled see the trade as a shocking win.

ESPN

Seahawks acquire QB Sam Howell in trade with Commanders

During his weekly radio show on Thursday, Seahawks general manager John Schneider said “several” other teams were involved in possibly trading for Howell and that Seattle is acquiring him to be Geno Smith’s backup – not to compete with Smith for the starting job.

“He had a great day against us this past fall,” Schneider told Seattle Sports 710-AM. “He’s a quarterback but he’s really a football player. That’s what I love about him. Really tough, young. He’s 23 years old and has 18 starts in the league already. He’s the same age as like [Jayden] Daniels from LSU and [Spencer] Rattler and [Michael] Penix [Jr.], and he’s a year younger than Bo Nix.

“We were just really excited to be able to acquire him. We know he’s a serious dude. He’s into it, he works his tail off. We got great reviews on him and we loved him coming out of college. So yeah, we’re happy to get him in the mix. Geno’s the guy and Sam will be backing him up.”

NFL.com

2024 NFL free agency: Four biggest surprises so far

Commanders making plenty of smart moves

It hasn’t been shocking to see the Commanders in blitz mode early in free agency. They have the money. They need the talent — and the buzz.

But the flurry of moves they’ve made so far — more than a dozen signings at publishing — haven’t cost the team dearly. New GM Adam Peters is stockpiling mostly young talents, plus a few experienced leaders, to replenish a Washington roster that had a number of small-to-medium holes that needed fixing before the biggest ones can be addressed.

The Marcus Mariota acquisition didn’t particularly move me, but for a team that’s destined to draft a quarterback with the second overall pick, it made some sense. Even with signing 34-year-old Bobby Wagner, most of the additions were of the under-30 variety, and if you’re going to give an aged veteran a contract, do it short term (one year) for manageable money ($8.5 million) and to a guy who never misses snaps. The Zach Ertz signing is in this same vein.

Frankie Luvu was my favorite upside addition, with Dorance Armstrong not terribly far behind. Tyler Biadasz, Nick Allegretti, Jeremy Chinn and Austin Ekeler — these aren’t sexy signings, but they’re smart infrastructure pieces. Again, mostly one- and two-year deals. Mostly cheap, by league standards.

The Commanders are creating competition and depth, and it’s not costing them a ton. Who can’t sign off on that approach?

Free agency is one piece of the puzzle, and it’s often overrated in some respects. But there’s little doubt this roster needed a thicker layer of insulation, and Peters is off to a great start in that respect. Forgoing the splashy moves of the prior regime, Peters is showing in his first few months on the job that he might understand this roster-building thing pretty well.

This has the short-term effect of improving the talent and professionalism on the roster. Long term, it can set up the team to be more picky in free agency and improve its compensatory-pick equation, something Washington hasn’t taken advantage of historically. There’s plenty left to achieve for the Commanders, but the early phase of free agency has given them a promising start to their journey.

Commanders.com

Five things to know about Marcus Mariota

2. He knows how to win games in the fourth quarter.

Mariota was drafted by the Tennessee Titans with the No. 2 overall pick in 2015 with high expectations to take a franchise that had struggled mightily in 2014 and turn it into a playoff contender. Mariota’s first three seasons were marred with injuries, but he showed an aptitude for delivering in clutch moments. He has 11 fourth-quarter comebacks and 14 game-winning drives in his career, and there was no one better at either in 2017.

The 2017 season marked the start of the Titan emerging at one of the tougher teams in the AFC. They went 9-7 that year, and thanks to Mariota and his fourth-quarter heroics, they secured back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2008. He had three fourth-quarter comebacks and four game-winning drives, with some of his most impressive performances coming in wins over the Ravens, Jaguars and Seahawks.

One of his gutsiest performances came in 2018, when the Titans hosted the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 4. Despite dealing with an ulnar nerve issue that bothered him for most of the season, Mariota threw for 344 yards, converted three fourth downs on the final drive and had the game-winning touchdown pass to Corey Davis.

Mariota has been brought in to compete as a backup, but if he needs to play, there’s some confidence that he can deliver.

Burgundy & Gold Report

Dallin Holker is an Impact Tight End | Commanders NFL Draft

Dallin Holker

6’3” 241 lbs | TE | CSU

Proj Late 3rd Rd

BYU Stats (28 games)– 42 rec 521 yds and 3 TDs (12.4 avg)

2023 (12 games)– 64 rec 767 yds and 6 TDs (12.0 avg)

Holker spent 2019 and 2020 seasons in Vina del Mar, Chile for his Mormon mission.

Fast forward to 2022 in which Holker only played in 3 games due to an ankle injury, registering 86 yards and 1 touchdown. Through his career at BYU the tight end recorded 521 yards receiving and 3 touchdowns.

Holker made the decision to transfer to Colorado state for the 2023 season and made an immediate impact. He finished the season with 767 receiving yards for 6 touchdowns and a rushing TD with a 12.0 yard per catch average.

Holker was named team captain and a John Mackey Award Finalist (award for nations best college TE). In addition, the Rams tight end was named 1st Team All-Mountain West and 2nd Team All-American by ESPN, USA Today and SI among other outlets.

Outlook

Holker had a career moment last October, when he was on the receiving end of a Hail Mary vs Boise State that tied the game with only seconds remaining in regulation. The touchdown by the Rams tight end was followed by an extra point for the victory. It was the schools first ever win over the Broncos.

The Rams tight end had a career season after transferring to CSU and was hard to stop when matched up 1-on-1 in the redzone last season. Some evalautors even beleive he could contribute as a fullback on the next level.

The slow combine time (4.78 sec forty) didn’t do Holker any favors, but his 3-cone drill was 2nd among tight ends (6.83 seconds) and most importantly his 20-yard shuttle was also 2nd among tight ends. Those are the events that translate to the next level.

Although the Rams tight end won’t outrun NFL defenisve backs and linebackers, he’s a load to bring down. Holker has the ability to be an excellent safety blanket, that opens up the middle of the filed in the receiving game.

Lack of career production will keep Holker out of the first two rounds along with timed speed, but if available late in round 3 he would represent excellent value for tight end needy teams.

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The numbers behind Sam Howell’s trade to the Seahawks

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Pro Football Talk

Eagles sign Devin White to one-year contract

The 26-year-old White has played his entire NFL career for the Buccaneers, who selected him with the fifth overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft. Last year he played in 14 games with 13 starts, but the Buccaneers started to phase him out down the stretch, and he was only a part-time player off the bench in the Bucs’ two playoff games. Late in the season White insisted that he hadn’t quit on his team amid questions about why he missed three games.

Now White will get a fresh start in Philadelphia, which needs a fresh start on defense after a disappointing end to last season. With a big year, he has a chance to make an impact on the Eagles and turn his own career around.

Deadspin

Cowboys QB Dak Prescott accused of sexual assault after filing extortion suit

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is being investigated for an alleged sexual assault in 2017 related to the extortion lawsuit he filed on Monday that claims the woman demanded money to remain quiet about the allegation.

The woman filed a criminal complaint Tuesday and Dallas police are investigating her claim that Prescott sexually assaulted her in the back of an SUV in the parking lot of a strip club, XTC Cabaret, on Feb. 2, 2017. Attorneys representing the accuser claim Prescott’s representatives acknowledge they were together on the night of the alleged incident.

Prescott’s lawsuit, which was filed in Collin County, lists the female accuser and her attorneys. Prescott claims they demanded $100 million for her silence in a letter he received in January.

The Dallas Police Department is investigating claims of sexual assault, and authorities in Prosper, Texas, began an extortion investigation one day before the alleged victim reported the alleged sexual assault.

“Mr. Prescott, a new father to a baby girl, has great empathy for survivors of sexual assault,” attorney Levi McCathern, who is representing Prescott, said in a statement to ESPN. “He fervently believes that all perpetrators of such crimes should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. To be clear, Mr. Prescott has never engaged in any nonconsensual sexual conduct with anyone. Lies hurt. Especially malicious lies. We will not allow the defendant and her legal team to profit from this attempt to extort millions from Mr. Prescott.”

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AP News

NFL is reviewing whether Eagles and Falcons violated tampering policies

Penn State coach James Franklin told a reporter that Eagles general manager Howie Roseman spoke to Barkley and pitched him on the connection between the Eagles and Nittany Lions fan bases.

Teams are permitted to talk directly with agents during the 52-hour negotiating window, but can’t speak to the player unless he has no agent and represents himself.

The Eagles have denied the claims and Barkley said Franklin misinterpreted their conversation.

“That was through my agent and my agent told me that,” Barkley said.

In Atlanta’s case, Cousins said Wednesday: “There’s great people here. And it’s not just the football team. I mean, I’m looking at the support staff. Meeting — calling, yesterday, calling our head athletic trainer, talking to our head of PR I’m thinking, we got good people here. And that’s exciting to be a part of.”

Cousins wasn’t permitted to speak to anyone before 4 p.m. EDT on Wednesday.

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell suggested last week in an interview with NFL Network that the market for Cousins grew at the league’s scouting combine.

“I think the combine just kind of gave everybody else an opportunity — even whether they’re supposed to be or not — to maybe have some conversations,” O’Connell said.

NBC Sports

NFL tampering rules: What to know amid Eagles and Falcons probes

The reported investigations come after some eyebrow-raising comments made by Kirk Cousins and Penn State football coach James Franklin.

What are the NFL tampering penalties?

A team found in violation of the league’s tampering rules could be fined and/or docked draft capital.

In 2016, the Kansas City Chiefs were punished by the league after being found to have engaged in improper contact with pending Eagles free agent wideout Jeremy Maclin. The contact took place prior to the start of the 2015 free agency period.

The Chiefs were fined $250,000 and docked two draft picks — a third-rounder and sixth-rounder. Head coach Andy Reid was fined $75,000 and then-GM John Dorsey was fined $25,000 as well.

In 2022, the Miami Dolphins were stripped of a first-round pick and third-round pick after owner Stephen Ross and vice chairman/limited partner Bruce Beal were found to have violated tampering rules in conversations with quarterback Tom Brady and the agent of head coach Sean Payton. Brady and Payton were both under contract with other teams when the improper contact was made by Miami.

Ross was fined $1.5 million and handed a six-week suspension while Beal was fined $500,000 and temporarily banned from league meetings.

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