1. Tyron Smith gets 8-year extension
Cowboys OT Tyron Smith signed a $110M, eight-year extension earlier this week. Smith chose the long-term deal, one that puts him with the team through 2023, over shorter, higher-guarantee contract options.
The Cowboys view Smith as a cornerstone of their future, guaranteeing $40 million and a $10 million signing bonus, according to sources. The team thought it necessary to lock up a young, key piece in Smith, who does not turn 24 until December and will be able to hit free agency again by the time he is 32.
2. Terry Pegula pulls ahead in bid for Bills
Terry Pegula, the Buffalo Sabres’ owner, has received a big bump in his bid to purchase the Buffalo Bills.
The Buffalo Sabres owner closed Tuesday on a $1.75 billion deal to sell the drilling rights on about 75,000 acres of land in Ohio and West Virginia to American Energy, which will be useful especially after Donald Trump said he made an initial non-binding bid of $1 billion.
The Pegulas and New York real estate mogul Donald Trump have both advanced to the next round of the sale process by Morgan Stanley, the banking firm overseeing the sale. A Toronto-based group fronted by rocker Jon Bon Jovi has also expressed interest in buying the Bills, but with Pegula’s latest bid he’s likely to pull out.
Bon Jovi’s initial bid to buy the Bills was rejected. SHOT THROUGH THE HEART, Jon. HAVE A NICE DAY. Your bid was LAID DOWN IN A BED OR ROSES
— Jim Rome (@jimrome) August 6, 2014
3. Marshawn Lynch ends Seattle Seahawks holdout
Marshawn Lynch’s one-week holdout from Seattle Seahawks camp is over.
Lynch told former teammate Michael Robinson before the stalemate that he planned to skip camp in an attempt to receive a new contract, after he signed a four-year, $30 million contract in 2012.
Cardinals CB Patrick Peterson signed a five-year deal worth $70 million, with $48 million guaranteed, making him the highest paid CB in the NFL. Lynch had been set to make $5 million this year – $500,000 in per-game roster bonuses and $500,000 in incentives.With Lynch’s holdout, the Seahawks rolled that money into his base salary as well as added $500,000 that had been bookmarked to Lynch for 2015, bumping his base from $5 million to $6.5 million.
Beast is back!!! #Seahawks
— Marshawn Lynch (@MarshawnLynch24) August 1, 2014
4. NFL placing trackers in pads
The NFL will install real-time location systems in 17 of its stadiums this year, in its hope to use tracking devices to enhance player statistics.
Receivers will be placed in the players’ shoulder pads, and work in tandem with radio frequency identification transmitters, turning player movement into meaningful measurements of distance and speed.
5. Ray Guy first punter inducted into NFL HOF
Ray Guy, the longtime Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders punter, became the first punter elected into the NFL Hall of Fame on Saturday.
Guy was a seven-time Pro Bowler and spent his 14-year career with the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders. He was a member of three Super Bowl teams.
6. Patriots worked out QB Brady Quinn
Brady Quinn’s professional career looked over last week, after Fox Sports announced that they had hired the former Notre Dame and NFL quarterback this fall, but a day later Quinn told The Dan Patrick Show that he tried out for an NFL team.
Quinn was the Browns’ 2007 first-round pick, and he’s played for Denver, Kansas City, Seattle, New York (Jets) and St. Louis in six NFL seasons, posting a 4-16 career mark.
7. Andy Dalton signs seven-year, $126.97M extension
Cincinnati Bengals’ quarterback Andy Dalton signed a seven-year, $126.97 million extension earlier this week, similar to 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s recent contract signing (six-year, $115million).
Dalton will receive a $12 million signing bonus, a $5 million roster bonus Add in Dalton’s $968,000 base salary for 2014, and he’ll make $18 million overall in the first year of the deal. In 2015, he’ll get a $4 million roster bonus and a $3 million non-guaranteed base salary, making it a total of $25 million in the first two years.
8. Giants’ David Wilson’s playing career over
The New York Giants running back David Wilson’s career appears to be over after just two seasons in the NFL.
The Giants announced that two doctors have advised Wilson, at just 23 years old, to stop playing football due to the condition of his neck and spine.
“David has diffuse cervical stenosis,” team doctor Russell Warren said in the team’s news release. “He had a disk removed and a fusion in January. In light of last week’s episode of symptoms, sensory and motor, Frank [Camisa, chief of spine services at the Hospital for Special Surgery] and I both told David he should not play football anymore.”
9. Johnny Manziel closes gap with Brian Hoyer
Johnny Manziel finally mixed in with the first-team offense last week, sparking a series of news stories speculating that the rookie will start ahead of Brian Hoyer in Week 1 of the regular season.
“I’m expecting Manziel to be the starter,” Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau said. “That’s what I’m expecting. What he did in college is not an accident. He did it often enough against good teams.”
While Hoyer was named the starter for the team’s first preseason game, LeBeau is just one of the many that believes Manziel will be the starting cum regular season. Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweeted about it as well.
Haven’t talked to one #Steelers player or coach who doesn’t think @JManziel2 won’t be Browns QB in Week 1.
— Alan Robinson (@arobinson_Trib) August 4, 2014
10. Glenn Dorsey likely out for season
San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey is expected to miss the rest of the season with a torn biceps.
Dorsey injured his left arm at practice Friday and left the field after being attended to by the training stuff. He will have surgery Monday.
