Here is a look at some of the top NFL rumors for Thursday, July 16:
After yesterday's deadline-beating deals for Dez Bryant (five years, $70 million, $45 guaranteed) and Demaryius Thomas (five years, $70 million, $43.5 guaranteed), reverberations will be felt around the league in the wide receiver market. We mentioned Tuesday that an extension for A.J. Green seems likely to happen next offseason, but Green's counterpart in the 2011 draft, Julio Jones, could reach an agreement sooner. ESPN's Vaughn McClure reports that while the Atlanta Falcons haven't yet opened discussions with Jones' camp, there's "a general sense around the team that a deal could get done by the start of training camp." The deals for Thomas and Bryant, while borne out of different circumstances, could help set the market for Jones, a two-time Pro Bowler whose per-game production has been among the league's best.
Another receiver affected by yesterday's big deals is T.Y. Hilton. The Indianapolis Colts' wideout had a career season in 2014 (1,345 yards and seven touchdowns) and has just a year remaining on his rookie deal. A former third-round pick who has been locked into a modest contract since arriving in the league, Hilton was paying close attention to yesterday's signings, as demonstrated by his Twitter account:
All this BREAKING NEWS. Does this mean the bar is set?? #THEGHOST
— TY Hilton (@TYHilton13) July 15, 2015Even though Hilton may not yet be on the level of Bryant and Thomas, Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star suggests those receivers' contracts will make Hilton less likely to re-sign with the Colts. Holder does "not anticipate [Hilton] taking a hometown discount" after seeing two peers get rewarded handsomely for their hard work. Further complicating matters, the Colts could be more comfortable letting Hilton walk after drafting Phillip Dorsett, a Hilton "clone" according to many scouting reports, in the first round of April's draft.
Speaking of Thomas, it appears the Denver Broncos' wide receiver passed up a longer contract offer from the team before agreeing to his five-year deal. According to Mike Klis of 9NEWS.com, the Broncos offered Thomas a seven-year, $100 million pact on June 1 with similar guarantees to those ultimately agreed upon ($42 million total, $35 million in the first two years). That deal would have averaged slightly more per year than Thomas' actual deal ($14.29 million vs. $14 million), but would have kept Thomas under contract for two unguaranteed years in 2021 and 2022, when the receiver would turn 33 and 34, respectively. With the market for receivers likely to climb between now and then, Thomas probably preferred the option of hitting free agency again at age 32.
After being released by the Philadelphia Eagles on June 11, guard Evan Mathis still appears to be moving slowly through the process of finding a new team. Speaking on CBS Sports Radio on Wednesday, Mathis indicated that it may be "a week or two" before he signs. "There’s no rush at all, and we still have a good week-and-a-half, two weeks before most training camps get started," Mathis said. "The teams have been patient just as we have, so there’s really been no point in rushing to get anything done. So exactly what my options are aren’t as clear as they will be in a week or two.” Mathis was released at a poor time to cash in with another team, as most teams had already used most of their cap space, but the Pro Bowler will certainly have suitors. A month ago, ESPN's John Clayton mentioned the Colts, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Miami Dolphins and the San Francisco 49ers as the "main teams looking at Mathis."