It was the proverbial Lazy Sunday on the NFL landscape, particularly as compared to the frenetic pace of the first two-plus days of the league's annual shopping extravaganza. However, despite the relative quiet, there were still a few new deals reached between late Saturday and Sunday, including one on the defensive side of the ball. Additionally, there are rumblings of upcoming visits for a couple of top-shelf names at the running back position, raising the level of intrigue as to their eventual destination. Without further ado, let's take a look at the latest happenings in the NFL offseason:
Sunday Signings
Corey "Philly" Brown signs one-year contract with Bills- The 25-year-old receiver spent the first three seasons of his career with the Carolina Panthers, compiling 79 catches for 1,019 yards and seven touchdowns, notching 13 receptions of over 20 yards and seeing 17 red-zone targets over that span. The Ohio State product had enjoyed a career year the season prior when he'd posted 31 catches for 447 yards and four touchdowns, along with 14.4 YPC and 8.3 YPT, all high-water marks, but those numbers, particularly the yardage, all suffered in Carolina's forgettable 2016 follow-up to their Super Bowl run. In Buffalo, he'll join an offense that does have more dynamic playmakers than the one he left behind, as Sammy Watkins and LeSean McCoy are some of the most explosive players at their respective positions when healthy. Meanwhile, Tyrod Taylor provides a rushing dimension comparable to Newton, although the latter is a more prolific passer. Brown presently slides into the No. 2 receiver spot on the depth chart with the departures of Robert Woods to the Rams and Marquise Goodwin to the 49ers, a duo that accounted for a total of 144 targets in 2016. With a collection of unproven options behind him at the position for the moment, as well as Watkins' lengthy injury history, Brown stands to see considerable volume as things look right now, but the Bills almost assuredly will seek to shore up the position with a high draft choice come April. It's worth nothing that the move reunites Brown with former Panters assistant Sean McDermott, now the Bills head coach, who does figure to have unique insight into how best to maximize Brown's talents.
Quan Bray signs exclusive rights tender with Colts- The 23-year-old receiver and special teamer has only three catches for 36 yards on his pro resume through his first two pro seasons, but has also compiled 801 kick return yards and another 224 on punt runbacks over that span. Bray still has a steep hill to climb to gain appreciable playing time from scrimmage, as T.Y. Hilton, Donte Moncrief and Phillip Dorsett naturally occupy the top three spots on receiver depth chart, while second-year wideout Chester Rogers already saw considerably more opportunity in his rookie season (19 receptions on 34 targets for 273 yards) than Bray has in his first two campaigns. Therefore, unless unforeseen circumstances come into play, Bray's fantasy value looks to be almost exclusively limited to return yardage once again in 2017.
Notable IDP Signing
DT Sylvester Williams signs three-year deal with Titans-Williams is a former first-round pick of the Broncos who's compiled 94 tackles (67 solo), six sacks, two passes defensed and one fumble recovery over 60 games (48 starts) in his first four pro seasons. Those numbers, while serviceable, didn't quite justify a re-signing in Denver's eyes, making Williams available to a Titans squad that already allowed the second-lowest YPR (4.0) and rush yards per game (88.3) last season. Williams could provide some decent IDP value this season in coordinator Dick LeBeau's aggressive scheme, although as a tackle, his number of impact plays, including sacks, are likely to be capped.
Late Saturday Dealings
Kendall Wright signs one-year deal with Bears worth up to $4 million- Wright joins a revamped Bears offense that will feature new signal-caller Mike Glennon and another new wideout in Markus Wheaton, who Wright will likely battle for the third receiver role. After a terrific start to his pro career -- one that saw Wright tally 158 receptions for 1,705 yards over his first two seasons -- the 2012 first-round pick saw his receptions drop in each of the last three campaigns. Wright flashed plenty of YAC ability in his early Titans years, with 32 receptions of over 20 yards in his first trio of seasons. Those opportunities were more scarce in the last two campaigns, but Wright has served as a viable red-zone threat and has compiled 18 touchdowns to date in his career. With the talented but somewhat unproven duo of Kevin White and Cameron Meredith projected to helm the Chicago receiving corps in 2017, Wright's veteran presence, sure hands and solid route-running could render him a fantasy sleeper.
Ryan Griffin re-signs with Texans on three-year deal- Griffin and C.J. Fiedorowicz will thus reprise their successful tight end partnership from 2016, with the only question being who they'll catch passes from in the coming season. Griffin enjoyed a career season in 2016 with 50 receptions for 442 yards, both personal bests, while also seeing a career-high eight red-zone targets. If rumors of a possible Tony Romo signing in Houston eventually prove to be accurate, Griffin's fantasy value would see a notable boost, especially considering the quarterback's long and successful track record targeting the position in Dallas.
RUMORED VISITS
Adrian Peterson and Jamaal Charles to visit Seahawks- The Seahawks certainly aren't being shy about their quest to upgrade the running back position, as the two multi-time Pro Bowlers are apparently on their schedule in the coming week. However, despite each player's outstanding body of work, there are numerous questions surrounding both, with their injury histories infusing a considerable amount of doubt into their potential viability going forward.
Peterson missed 28 games over the 2014 and 2016 seasons with a suspension, knee and groin injuries, but looked outstanding in a 1,485-yard, 11-touchdown campaign in 2015 when he played in all 16 contests. However, he was positively pedestrian by any measure last season while averaging 1.9 yards on his 37 carries, although the fact that he may have rushed his return could have had a large part to play.
Charles has played in just eight games himself over the last two campaigns, although he had three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons prior to that stretch, and has reached the milestone in five of the six seasons that haven't been significantly curtailed by injury. With a pair of torn ACLs and a failed physical on his resume, the Seahawks will undoubtedly perform their due diligence on the former Chief. It's unlikely that the 30-year-old Charles will ever be a full-time back again, but he would make for an intriguing complement to the likes of Thomas Rawls, C.J. Prosise and Alex Collins if sufficiently healthy.
CONFIRMED SATURDAY VISIT
Geno Smith speaks with the Giants- The star-crossed former first-round pick of the Jets remained in town for a free-agent visit to the Giants. Smith hasn't come close to living up to his draft pedigree so far in his career, but the tumultuous conditions in New York could certainly have had a part to play. A fresh start in a new locale where there won't be any expectations for him to compete for the starting job might be just the type of reset Smith needs to put the experience of his first four NFL seasons behind him.