By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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There’s no better way to start a week than by signing your first NFL contract.

A pair of rookies began Monday by completing their most important signatures to date, with 19th-overall pick O.J. Howard signing his deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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In a 1-15 season, it seemed as though the only positive outcome for the Cleveland Browns was the first overall selection in the 2017 draft, which became Myles Garrett.

It turns out that someone else is benefiting from the misery of 2016. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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The man charged with building the Bills into a true contender has made his first big hire.

Bills general manager Brandon Beane has hired Joe Schoen as Buffalo’s new assistant general manager, the team announced. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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In case of emergency, Blaine Gabbert.

That’s who the Cardinals will be able to turn to — if something unfortunate happens to Carson Palmer — now that they have signed the quarterback to a one-year deal, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, per a source informed of the situation. The team later made the annoucement official.

Gabbert joins the team with the intention of competing with Drew Stanton and former Miami (OH) passer Zac Dysert for the backup role, Rapoport added. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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News of Daryl Washington‘s conditional reinstatement barely registered a pulse across most of the NFL. After all, the linebacker hadn’t been on an NFL field in three years.

For the Cardinals, it wasn’t much different.

“We promptly said ‘this can wait,’” Cardinals president and owner Michael Bidwill said on SiriusXM’s Mad Dog Sports Radio with Adam Schein. “‘We’re going to focus on the draft,’ which we did. … Really, this week is the week that we’re focusing on it.” Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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The word out of Frisco, Texas, is that Jaylon Smith‘s future is as bright as ever. Cowboys brass is going to make sure you know and believe it, too.

A day after a former Chargers team doctor published a piece that expressed doubt that Smith would ever reach the lofty bar set for him, Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones doubled down on the team’s stance on the linebacker, saying the team views Smith as a “franchise player that will be around for many, many years,” per the Dallas Morning News. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Seattle is trimming its roster, and a notable name is looking for work again.

Cornerback Perrish Cox was among the eight players cut by the Seahawks on Tuesday.

It’s the second release for Cox in the last seven months. The corner was cut by the Titans in late November after recording 42 tackles and three interceptions in 11 games for Tennessee. Seattle signed Cox in January after DeShawn Shead suffered an ACL injury in the Seahawks‘ playoff loss to Atlanta. Around the NFL’s Chris Wesseling wrote in January that the 30-year-old Cox had a chance to carve out a role with a strong training camp, but he won’t get that opportunity in Seattle. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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There are approximately three star athletes who we can pencil in right now for life-sized bronze likenesses in the near future.

Well, make that two.

Cross Peyton Manning off the statue-in-waiting list, as the Colts announced Tuesday they’ve commissioned a monument in the likeness of the quarterback and will unveil it on Oct. 7 at 3 p.m. ET. The team will also retire Manning’s No. 18 jersey and induct him into the team’s ring of honor during halftime of the Colts‘ Oct. 8 game against San Francisco. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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There’s no sweeter time for new additions to the NFL than during rookie minicamps.

Every team is excited to have them. Reviews are glowing. The acclimation process is friendly and measured.

But as the fresh crop of quarterbacks receive their first playbooks — imagine the yellow pages back when landlines and answering machines were still hot — the sheer amount of information can be initially overwhelming. New Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes wasn’t shy about the increased difficulty in his first 72 hours of marriage with Kansas City’s offense. Continue reading →

By Nick Shook
NFL.com
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Victor Cruz just wants to play ball.

Cruz’s star rocketed into the night sky during the 2010 preseason, disappeared for a year, then re-emerged to shine bright for most of 2011-2013 before injuries started to become a regular problem for the wideout. Those same issues, coupled with younger talent at the position in New York led to Cruz’s divorce from the Giants. Months later, the receiver is still without a job.

“I just want to play,” Cruz told The New York Post on Tuesday. “I’m just anxious to get on a team, anxious to play some football and anxious to see where I end up.” Continue reading →