Welcome to the fourth edition of Pombo’s Weekly Football Rewind. This weekly series will go in depth about all of the latest news, rumors, signings, and trades of the past week.
Dak Prescott Finally Gets Paid
After almost two years of contract disputes, the Cowboys and Dak Prescott finally came to terms on a long-term extension.
The Cowboys and Prescott agreed to a four-year contract worth $160 million. The deal includes a no-trade clause, and $126 million is guaranteed. Prescott will make a whopping $75 million in the first-year of the contract.
In five seasons as the Cowboys starter, Prescott has a 42-27 regular season record, winning two NFC East titles.
At only 27 years old, Prescott has a lot of football in front of him, and will give the Cowboys stability and above-average play from the quarterback position.
The Cowboys dropped the ball on the Dak Prescott negotiations. This deal should have taken place two years ago, and the Cowboys would have paid less. Instead, they boxed themselves into a corner with no leverage. Sure, they could have franchised Prescott again, but his 2021 cap number would have been through the roof. Not to mention, he would have been unhappy as can be.
Instead, the Cowboys paid through the nose to keep Prescott, and I’m not sure they truly believe he is fully worth the investment. If they did, the contract negotiations would not have gone as rocky as they did.
Time will tell, especially after that gruesome ankle injury.
Cam Newton Returns to the Patriots
After many expected the Patriots to look elsewhere at the quarterback position, the Patriots agreed to terms on a one-year contract with Cam Newton.
Newton is coming off the worst season of his career, as he ranked 34th in the NFL in passing touchdowns, 28th in passer rating, and 30th in QBR. Newton was 7-8 as a starter, and the Patriots did not have a winning record for the first time since the year 2000. Newton was arguably the worst quarterback in all of football last season. He failed in a number of different categories, and the Patriots had one of the worst passing attacks in the league.
Despite his poor play, a couple weeks ago, I wrote about how Newton returning to the Patriots was a possibility.
It seems like the Patriots were determined to have some sort of quarterback depth chart before the start of free agency. The Patriots did not have a quarterback on their roster who has ever started a game in the NFL, and that could have been an issue once free agency heated up. The Patriots will be in the market for skill position players, and when it comes to signing those types of players, the quarterback matters.
According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo, Newton’s contract has a $5 million base value. He received a $2 million signing bonus and an additional $1.5 million is guaranteed.
This contract gives the Patriots a plethora amount of space if a quarterback of their liking becomes available.
Or, does Belichick really want to try the Cam Newton experiment out again?
Drew Brees Calls it a Career
After twenty seasons in the NFL, the 42 year old Drew Brees officially has announced his retirement.
The future hall of famer concludes his career as the all-time leader in career passing yards, and has the second most touchdown passes in NFL history.
Brees turned around the Saints franchise, as he finished his tenure there with a 142-86 record, and finished with a winning record in 10 of his 15 seasons.
His crowning achievement was of course the Super Bowl run in 2009. During that playoff run, Brees had eight touchdowns, completed 70.6% of his passes, and had zero turnovers.
Brees’ retirement was expected, as it was widely known across the league.
Next stop for Brees is Canton, Ohio.
Aaron Jones and the Packers Strike a Deal Before Free Agency
The 26 year old Aaron Jones is coming off of back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons, and the Packers seemed likely to lose him in free agency.
Especially, after the Packers drafted AJ Dillon in the second-round of the draft last season, it made sense. The Packers had some holes to fill on the roster, including at offensive line, defensive line, and at receiver. Paying Jones over $10 million a year seemed like a steep investment.
After declining to use the franchise tag on Jones, I personally didn’t see Jones returning to Green Bay. But, I was proven wrong. The Packers and Aaron Jones reached an agreement on a four-year deal worth $48 million.
According to Jones’ agent Drew Rosenhaus, Jones passed up on larger offers:
“We anticipated bigger offers in free agency, but Aaron wanted to stay with the Packers.”
At $12 million per year average annual value, Aaron Jones’ contract makes him the sixth highest-paid running back in the NFL. I was expecting Jones to come in around $14 million annually, but he elected to take a hometown discount to stay in Green Bay.
Now, despite keeping Jones around, the Packers must continue to add some talent around Aaron Rodgers.
Franchise Tag Frenzy
10 teams elected to utilize the franchise tag this offseason, removing a lot of talent from the free agent board.
The Bucs franchised Chris Godwin, the Jets franchised Marcus Maye, the Panthers franchised Taylor Moton, the Bears franchised Allen Robinson, the Jaguars franchised Cam Robinson, the Washington Football Team franchised Brandon Scherff, the Broncos franchised Justin Simmons, the Giants franchised Leonard Williams, the Saints franchised Marcus Williams, and the Cowboys tagged Dak Prescott as a procedural move after that long-term extension.
Chris Godwin came as a surprise to me, as I expected Tampa Bay to prioritize Shaq Barrett. Replacing Godwin is a much easier task then replacing Barrett.
But, none-the-less, these 10 players look to be staying put in 2021.
Tom Brady Officially Inks an Extension
Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Bucs reached a four-year extension, that actually voids after the 2022 season. So, Brady is tied to Tampa Bay through his age 45 season.
Playing until age 45 has been a goal of Brady’s for quite some time, and it seems like Brady has not wavered on that goal. After winning his seventh Super Bowl, Brady and the Bucs look like they’ll have two more kicks at the can together.
Brady’s extension saves the Bucs $19 million against the salary cap in 2021. It’s a huge development for the Bucs, as they have a laundry list of free agents to attend to.
Is this the last time Tom Brady signs an NFL contract? I mean I think so, but who knows when Brady will decide to hang it up.
But as of right now, it seems like Brady will be back for at least the next two seasons.
The Bills Reach an Agreement with Matt Milano
Matt Milano was considered to be one of the best free agent linebackers of the 2021 free agent class.
But, the Bills and Milano have reached a four-year extension worth $44 million, $24 million of that is guaranteed.
The 26 year old Milano is known to be a very good coverage linebacker, and has been one of the key anchors on the Bills defense.
Milano was very eager to get a deal done with the Bills, as he spoke glowingly of the future of the team:
“I just told my agent, I love Buffalo. I want to be in Buffalo... The culture that’s brewing there right now is unreal.”
The Bills keeping Milano is big for that defense going forward.
The Bucs Retain Lavonte David
The Bucs have multiple players that they are going to make a serious effort to retain, but, Lavonte David is the first one to receive an extension.
The 31 year old, reached a two-year extension worth $25 million with the Bucs, $20 million of that is guaranteed.
As Bruce Arians put it during the Super Bowl parade, "Your ass ain't going nowhere."
With Shaq Barrett’s uncertain future, retaining David was a priority for the Bucs. Their defense was a key component to their Super Bowl run, keeping that group together is important.
David didn’t want to play elsewhere, and seemed like he was always bound to return to the Bucs. He made that very clear after the extension was complete:
David will get a chance to compete for a Super Bowl in the immediate future.
The Patriots Acquire Trent Brown
In 2018, Trent Brown had the best season of his career, as he was the Patriots’ best offensive lineman, and helped guide the Patriots to a Super Bowl victory.
After his dynamic, one-year run with the Patriots, Brown signed a four-year deal worth $66 million with the Raiders. But, after just two years, the Raiders and Brown could not co-exist any longer. Brown missed 16 of 32 games in his two years with the Raiders.
The Raiders agreed to sent Brown back to the Patriots for a 2022 fifth-round draft pick. Along with Brown, the Patriots also received a 2022 seventh-round pick.
Shortly after the deal, the Patriots and Brown agreed on a contract restructure, as Brown’s new contract will be a one-year deal worth up to $11 million.
It’s unclear if Brown can get back to his 2018 form, and it’s also unclear where Brown will play on the offensive line. Brown played left tackle for the Patriots in 2018, but with Isaiah Wynn in the fold, it seems likely that Brown will move over to right tackle.
The Raiders and Brown were never able to really get off on the right foot, and Raiders general manager, Mike Mayock made that very clear when he spoke about Brown last week:
There’s no denying Brown’s immense talent, but it all comes down to preparation. If Bill Belichick can get Brown back-in-shape, it’ll prove to be a real steal.