NFL Notes: Cowboys, Jets, Panthers, & Patriots

Cowboys

• Todd Archer would be “extremely surprised” if the Cowboys signed a notable free agent during the offseason.
• Instead, Archer expects the Cowboys to look for team-friendly options.
• Archer writes that the Cowboys’ decision to give Kellen Moore some first-team reps indicates they’re willing to give him a shot.
• Archer believes the Cowboys would be the worst spot for Johnny Manziel.

Jets

• Rich Cimini was asked about the possibility of DeMarco Murray landing with the Jets next year. Cimini considers it an interesting idea, but believes it could be cost-prohibitive.
• Cimini expects the Jets to be in the market for a running back, given that Chris Ivory, Bilal Powell and Stevan Ridley will be free agents.
• The issue for the Jets in a potential trade for Murray is the total compensation he’s due in 2016 and 2017 — $14.5 million.
• New York could possibly re-sign Ivory and Powell for that kind of money.

Panthers

Panthers HC Ron Rivera said that he’s still undecided if he will rest some of his star players once they clinch home-field advantage.

“I can’t tell you what I’m going to do,” Rivera said on Friday, via ESPN.com. “It’s about being smart down the stretch. Again, the ultimate goal is to win [the Super Bowl]. But at the same time, I’ve got to look at things, weigh things. But I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Patriots

• Jason La Canfora reports that Patriots QB Tom Brady is feeling a bit better after dealing with an illness in recent days.
• La  Canfora adds that the Pats are not concerned about Brady’s ability to start Sunday’s game.

Patriots HC Bill Belichick explained that their decision to claim WR Leonard Hankerson off waivers from the Falcons was as simple as grabbing a quality player who happened to be available.

“He’€™s been a good player and he was available,” Belichick said, via Mike Petraglia of WEEI.com. “It’€™s not that frequent that you see players like that available at this time of year, so we claimed him.”