HeadtoHeadFootball -
NFL

49ers cut Zuttah months after trading for him

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The competition for the San Francisco 49ers’ starting center job ended after just 10 practices.

The Niners released veteran center Jeremy Zuttah — who was expected to compete with Daniel Kilgore — on Wednesday morning, after less than two weeks of training camp.

“That was a tough decision,” head coach Kyle Shanahan said. “That was something we were really looking at last night. I think it says a lot about how Kilgore has been playing. He’s done a really good job in practice with that center spot.”

The 49ers acquired Zuttah in a March trade with the Baltimore Ravens; the teams also swapped sixth-round picks (No. 186 to Baltimore and No. 198 to San Francisco). Zuttah was coming off a Pro Bowl appearance, and his previous experience playing in offenses similar to Shanahan’s made him an intriguing fit.

At a personnel meeting Tuesday night, Shanahan, general manager John Lynch and their respective staffs spent time examining the roster and whether there was a spot for Zuttah.

Daniel Kilgore will be the 49ers’ starting center this season, winning the competition with Jeremy Zuttah, who was released on Wednesday. Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

“It just looked to us like we weren’t going to get Zuttah a lot of playing time throughout the preseason,” Shanahan said. “He’s a guy I have a lot of respect for; he’s done a lot of good things in this league. I just told him this morning I had a hard time doing that to him, and [I] wanted to give him a chance to go somewhere else instead of keeping him here and making him go through that.”

“I’d love to keep everybody, especially a guy who can still play in this league,” Shanahan added, “but we thought it was better for him and better for us to move on.”

Zuttah, 31, spent his first six seasons with Tampa Bay, playing both guard and center, after the Bucs used a third-round pick (83rd overall) on him in the 2008 NFL draft. He was in Baltimore for three seasons before the Niners traded for him. He played exclusively at center with the Ravens. He has appeared in 131 games, making 117 starts.

With Zuttah gone, the Niners will lean on Kilgore as the starter in the middle with veteran Tim Barnes as the current backup. Barnes signed with the Niners after the Rams let him go late in the offseason.

Kilgore and Barnes have also been getting work at guard, adding to the versatility Shanahan seeks in his offensive linemen.

“I think it’s very hard to make a final roster when you have a bunch of center-only [players],” Shanahan said. “Then it’s just a domino effect. You want to see these guys’ versatility. It’s not always exactly who is the best, it’s how to fill out the best 53-man roster and there’s not always an obvious right answer.”

Elsewhere on the interior of the offensive line, guard Joshua Garnett is set to have cleanup surgery on his left knee Thursday, according to Shanahan.

“Time frame, I haven’t been given one yet,” Shanahan said. “I’m hoping that he has a chance for Week 1 but I know that’s going to be a battle.”

In a corresponding move, the 49ers signed linebacker Sean Porter to a one-year deal. Porter, 26, appeared in two games for the Jaguars last season. He entered the league as a fourth-round pick of the Bengals in 2013.

NFL

Adams Smith to sell one-third stake in Titans

5:02 PM ET

  • Cameron WolfeESPN

    Close

    • Covered the Broncos for two seasons with the Denver Post
    • Graduate of the University of Houston
    • A native of Jackson, Miss.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Susie Adams Smith is selling her one-third ownership stake in the Tennessee Titans ownership. Her sister, Amy Adams Strunk, also owns one-third of the team and will remain the team’s controlling owner.

Adams Smith’s sale of the Titans is a portion of a larger sale of the KSA Industries, which includes several business ventures ranging from oil and gas to real estate.

“Recently Susie began the process of selling her portion of KSA Industries, which includes a fractional indirect interest in the Tennessee Titans. We respect her right to make this decision and will cooperate fully with the process, which will not impact team operations in any way,” Strunk said in a statement. “Regardless of the outcome of this process, I will continue to serve as the controlling owner of the Titans. The remaining two-thirds of the team controlled by myself, Kenneth Adams IV, Barclay Adams and Susan Lewis is not and has never been for sale.”

Strunk and Smith each own a third of the Titans with the remaining third being owned by Kenneth Adams IV, Barclay Adams and Susan Lewis.

The Titans ownership has come into the news over the last few years following previous owner Bud Adams’ death in 2013. In 2015, the Titans were fined, reportedly a six-figure amount, over their ownership structure. Recently, the league has been satisfied with their ownership structure as Strunk has taken a clear leading voice among the group.

“Both personally and as a group, we have invested time, effort and capital to improve this franchise and we are excited to see the results on and off the field for years to come,” Strunk said.

Forbes valued the Titans at approximately $2 billion in 2016.

NFL

Harbaugh not concerned that Flacco still out

Ravens coach John Harbaugh said he isn’t overly concerned about quarterback Joe Flacco being sidelined longer than the expected one week of rest.

Flacco has yet to practice in training camp because of tightness in his back, and there is no definitive timetable on his return. Doctors told Flacco and the Ravens that he would need about a week of rest in order for the back injury to subside. Flacco has already been out for 11 days.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a problem because Joe knows the offense,” Harbaugh said after Monday’s practice. “But still, there’s a rhythm, a chemistry and timing and execution that practice is valuable for. So, the sooner the better, but not before he’s ready.”

Flacco went for a second opinion on his injured back last week, a league source told ESPN’s Dan Graziano. The result was “positive for a slow return,” the source said.

“As a coach, you want to get him as soon as you can, that’s the bottom line,” Harbaugh said. “I want him here yesterday. I want him a week ago. I want him here the first day. As soon as he’s ready to go, we’ll go to work to get him ready.”

One reason why the Ravens can take a cautious approach is the fact that Flacco is entering his 10th NFL season.

“Every play we’ve run, he’s run before numerous times,” Harbaugh said.

NFL

How Adam Gase can work magic — again

We can throw out Jay Cutler’s lost season with the Chicago Bears in 2016. Don’t even watch it. Injuries, a new system and he played in only five games.

But we only have to go back to 2015 to find a time when Cutler played extremely efficient football. With 3,659 passing yards, 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 64.4 completion percentage, it was one of the best full seasons of his career. And his coordinator that year? Current Miami Dolphins coach Adam Gase, who spent only one season with the Bears.

More people play on ESPN than anywhere else. Join or create a league in the No. 1 Fantasy Football game! Sign up for free!

Now Gase has convinced Cutler, who retired early this offseason, to join him in Miami after Ryan Tannehill went down with a knee injury. And if Cutler plays to the level he did in 2015, the Dolphins might not miss a beat.

Here’s what Gase did during that season to maximize Cutler’s strengths and cut down on the negatives. Plus, with the film, we can also get a look at how Cutler can make the Dolphins better right now.

High-percentage throws

We know Cutler has a live arm. He can sling it. But Gase used the call sheet to put Cutler in situations in which he could lean on the quick passing game and routes concepts that produced much more high-percentage throws. Take the risk out of the mix and give Cutler more clean reads in the short-to-intermediate route tree (see example below).

Think of Jarvis Landry for the Dolphins on the quick inside drag route or using DeVante Parker. This is a third-and-short situation. But instead of asking Cutler to make a tight-window throw, Gase uses formation and scheme (hi-lo mesh) to create an open lane for Cutler. This is a simple toss. Just dump the ball to his receiver with plenty of room to produce after the catch.

Run-pass options

Just like we saw with a healthy Tannehill in Miami, Gase will use plenty of run-pass options to give the offense a numbers advantage. These are defined reads based on the defensive alignment. And Cutler has experience running Gase’s RPO packages. Throw the wide receiver screen to Landry, pull the ball on a QB designed run, hand off to Jay Ajayi on the inside zone or hit the inside pop pass (see example below).

Cutler has the athleticism and the toughness to handle the football on these RPOs. And that creates a matchup advantage for the Dolphins when Cutler can read the end-man on the line of scrimmage, pull the rock and force the linebacker to attack downhill before tossing the screen. That’s a modern-day triple-option — and we will see it this season.

Scripted deep ball shots

Cutler loves to take his shots down the field on 50/50 throws. But Gase also used his game plan — based on opponent — to script matchups on deep throws. This allowed Cutler to challenge both single-high and two-deep safety looks while also taking advantage of Gase’s game-planning to find targets over the top of the secondary (see example below).

The Chiefs are a man-free/pressure defense. And Gase knew it. That’s why he called for a deep 7 (corner) route from a bunch formation. This allowed the receiver to break away from the defender’s leverage — with no help to the outside. This ball? It’s a dime. And it’s the type of throw Cutler can make to Kenny Stills when the Dolphins want to take a calculated deep shot.

Boot/play-action

Similar to RPOs, Gase utilized Cutler’s mobility off boot/play action. And with a strong run game in Miami led by Ajayi, the Dolphins can lean on the same schemes to get Cutler to the edge of the pocket. That gives Cutler much clearer throwing lanes and it also cuts the field in half (see example below).

Whether Cutler is under center or out of the gun (as we see here), he is very good at buying time on the edge and using a combination of velocity and touch to find open targets. This also puts Cutler in a situation in which he can pull the ball down and run. Lot of positives to featuring Cutler in Gase’s system off play-action and movement.

Creating favorable matchups

When the Dolphins move the ball into the red zone, look for Gase to use formation and alignment to give Cutler the best matchup possible. That could be Landry inside on the fade route from the slot (the toughest route to cover in football) or Parker on the seam due to his size and ability at the point of attack (see example below).

I really like that play call from Gase because he widened the defense to give Alshon Jeffery an inside matchup. With the running back flexed out wide, Jeffery now gets to work out of the slot. And Cutler absolutely rips this ball for the score. With the talent the Dolphins have at wide receiver, this is an area of the field where Cutler can play smart and productive football under Gase yet again.

Page 274 of 368« First...102030273274275276280290300...Last »