Football – Page 6 – North Platte Post Archive

AP Source: Chiefs give Ron Parker 5-Year, $30M Deal

Posted on March 14, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs are bringing back versatile defensive back Ron Parker on a five-year, $30 million contract, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the Chiefs have not announced the deal.

Parker’s hometown newspaper, The Beaufort Gazette of South Carolina, was first to report Saturday that the free agent was returning to Kansa City.

Justin Turner, who represents Parker, fielded no shortage of offers for the fourth-year pro after a breakout year with the Chiefs. Parker split time at cornerback and safety, starting 15 of the 16 games he played last season. He finished with 94 tackles and an interception.

Broncos Replace Rahim Moore with Darian Stewart

Posted on March 13, 2015

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — A day after losing starting free safety Rahim Moore to the Houston Texans, the Denver Broncos agreed to a two-year deal with Darian Stewart.

The sixth-year pro had a solid season in Baltimore last year, when he secured the Ravens’ playoff win over Pittsburgh with a late interception in the end zone.

He played in all 16 games and started a career-best 14 times for the Ravens last season, recording 53 tackles, an interception, four pass breakups and a forced fumble.

Stewart played in St. Louis from 2010-13 after going undrafted out of South Carolina.

Chiefs Add Long-Snapper Winchester as Overhaul Continues

Posted on March 13, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have signed long snapper James Winchester to a two-year contract, yet another move in what has turned into a massive roster overhaul this offseason.

The signing Friday came one day after the Chiefs traded a fifth-round draft pick to New Orleans for Pro Bowl offensive guard Ben Grubbs and signed offensive lineman Paul Fanaika, a former Cardinals starter.

Kansas City also signed wide receiver Jeremy Maclin and safety Tyvon Branch this week, and released veteran wide receiver Dwayne Bowe in a cost-saving move.

Kansas City now has three long snappers on the roster in Winchester, Brandon Hartson and Jorgen Hus, which means the club appears to be moving on from incumbent Thomas Gafford.

Broncos Sign DE Vance Walker to 2-Year Deal

Posted on March 12, 2015

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Broncos continued their low-key approach to free agency with the signing of defensive lineman Vance Walker to a two-year, $4 million deal Thursday.

The versatile seventh-year pro is familiar to the Broncos because he’s spent the last two seasons in the AFC West.

Walker, who turns 28 next month, was a 3-4 defensive end for Kansas City last season and a 4-3 defensive tackle in Oakland the year before that.

He spent his first four season with the Falcons, who drafted him out of Georgia Tech, where he was teammates with Broncos star receiver Demaryius Thomas.

Brasfield Joins Nebraska Staff, Wilhite Promoted

Posted on March 12, 2015

University of Nebraska Head Coach Mike Riley has announced the addition of Chris Brasfield to the Husker football staff. Brasfield will serve as Nebraska’s Director of High School Relations.

Brasfield joins the Nebraska staff following four seasons of working with Riley at Oregon State. Brasfield served as the Beavers’ running backs coach for the past four seasons and was regarded as an elite recruiter for Oregon State.

In his role at Nebraska, Brasfield will oversee the administration of the Huskers’ walk-on program and serve as the primary contact for high school football coaches. Brasfield will also serve as the initial point of contact with the Nebraska program for professional teams, and will help coordinate the Huskers’ annual pro day workouts.

“Chris will play a key role in the administration of our football program as we continue to develop relationships with high school coaches throughout the region, and also build on the great walk-on tradition at Nebraska,” Riley said. “Chris will bring great energy to this position and has an eye for identifying and evaluating talent. Chris has experience at the professional, college and high school levels which helps make him an excellent fit for this job.”

Brasfield helped develop versatile running backs in his four seasons on Riley’s staff at Oregon State. Tailback Storm Woods accounted for more than 2,100 rushing yards during the past three seasons in the Beaver offense. Known for his recruiting ability, Brasfield was recognized in 2012 as one of the top 50 recruiters in the country.

Brasfield gained a wide range of experience at both the collegiate and professional level before his time at Oregon State. He was a defensive graduate assistant at Oregon in 2010, after spending the previous four seasons as the defensive backs coach at Samford. Brasfield also served in assistant coaching roles at Midwestern State, Southwest Texas State and TCU.

Brasfield has NFL experience with three organizations, most recently participating in the NFL Minority Coaching Internship program with the Titans in 2009. He also served as an intern with the Oakland Raiders in 2000, and was an area scout for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2001 and 2002.

A San Antonio native, Brasfield has extensive high school coaching experience as well, including stops at Fort Worth’s Country Day, All Saints Episcopal School and Chicago Hope Academy in Illinois.

Nebraska has also announced that Kenny Wilhite has been promoted to Associate Director of Player Personnel. Wilhite joined the Husker football staff in the spring of 2014 as a regional recruiting assistant, before transitioning to the player personnel role on Mike Riley’s staff.

Wilhite plays a key role in the recruiting efforts in helping identify prospective Nebraska student-athletes, while assisting on all official and unofficial visits. Wilhite was a standout defensive back at Nebraska, earning All-Big Eight honors in 1991.

AP Sources: Saints Trade Grubbs to Chiefs for 5th-Rounder

Posted on March 12, 2015

METAIRIE, La. (AP) — Two people familiar with the deal say the New Orleans Saints have traded starting left guard Ben Grubbs to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for a fifth-round draft choice.

The people spoke to The Associated Press Thursday on condition of anonymity because neither club had announced the trade.

The move gives the Chiefs a veteran offensive lineman who was named to Pro Bowls in 2011 and 2013, while giving the Saints not just an additional draft pick, but also more flexibility under the NFL’s salary cap.

Grubbs, an eight-year veteran out of Auburn, is due a base salary of $6.5 million this season.

He began his NFL career in Baltimore in 2007, starting 12 games as a rookie. Grubbs joined New Orleans in 2012.

AP Source: Chiefs Agreed with OL Fanaika on 3-Year Deal

Posted on March 11, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs and offensive guard Paul Fanaika have agreed to terms on a three-year deal, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday night because the Chiefs have not announced the deal. Fanaika still must pass a physical for it to be complete.

The Chiefs were looking for help on the offensive line after losing three starters to free agency last offseason, and then watching starting center Rodney Hudson sign a five-year, $44.5 million deal with AFC West rival Oakland this week.

Fanaika was a seventh-round draft pick of the Eagles in 2009, when Chiefs coach Andy Reid was in charge. He’s come into his own in Arizona, starting all 30 games he played in over the past two seasons.

Huskers Learning Under Riley

Posted on March 11, 2015

Lincoln, Neb.- The Nebraska football team continued its 2015 spring practice season Wednesday afternoon, as the Huskers practiced outside at the Ed and Joyanne Gass practice fields in sunny, 70-degree weather. The Huskers were in full pads for the first time this spring, as the team was again split into two groups, and each group practiced for about an hour and 45 minutes.

Nebraska Head Coach Mike Riley spoke with media members following Wednesday’s practice, as he mentioned that the Huskers had a really good first day of contact practice in full pads.

“I thought it was really good, it was a beautiful day, we added pads for the first time which means we were able to do our first ‘inside run’ period,” Riley said. “I thought the guys handled that very well, a lot of what we are doing is not only teaching the plays and how to run the plays, but basically it is how to practice.”

Riley added that the intensity at practice has been really good so far this spring.

“For the most part I really liked the enthusiasm at practice, I thought they got into the first day of pads and hit pretty well without a lot of craziness going on.”

According to Riley, the team is really starting to mesh and learn the playbook, not only the players, but the coaching staff as well.

“I think it is going pretty well, there is always some frustration for the coaches and for the players, when it doesn’t quite click all the time,” Riley said. “That is understandable, but for the most part for what we have done so far, both coaches and players are handling the newness pretty well.”

The first day of contact practice also brought the first day of practicing the inside run with both the offensive line and running backs. This was something Riley had been eager to see because as he said, the Huskers have to run the football to be successful.

“I was looking forward to today because of that, with everything being said, we really need to run the football. We need to have a little variety in the run game, so far we have probably more shotgun run than we have ever had in our offense to this point. That has been interesting.

Nebraska returns to the practice field on Friday for its fourth workout of the spring. Check back at Huskers.com for updates.

Chiefs Announce Signing of Wide Receiver Jeremy Maclin

Posted on March 11, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have signed Jeremy Maclin to a five-year deal, adding the down-the-field threat that their wide receiver group was sorely lacking last season.

The contract is worth up to $55 million, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because those details were not announced.

The Chiefs planned an afternoon news conference to introduce their newest addition.

Maclin started all 16 games for the Eagles last season. He set career highs with 85 catches for 1,318 yards and 10 touchdowns, and showed no lingering effects from the torn ACL that caused him to miss the entire 2013 season.

His addition could mean the end of Dwayne Bowe’s tenure in Kansas City. The veteran wide receiver is due to count $14 million against the salary cap.

Suh Arrives in Miami as Dolphins Close in on Record Deal

Posted on March 11, 2015

MIAMI (AP) — Ndamukong Suh has arrived in Miami and is soon expected to sign a contract with the Dolphins that will make him the highest-paid defensive player in NFL history.

In anticipation of sealing the deal Wednesday, the Dolphins released defensive tackle Randy Starks, who had been with the team since 2008, the longest tenure of any position player. Starks started 96 games for Miami but struggled late last season.

His release clears $5 million in salary cap space, which will be needed to make room for Suh’s huge contract. Suh was a three-time first-team All-Pro defensive tackle with the Detroit Lions.

The Dolphins brought in free agent cornerback Brice McCain for a visit. McCain has 19 career starts, including nine last year for the Steelers.