NFL notebook: Titans releasing RB Murray

The Tennessee Titans informed running back DeMarco Murray on Thursday that he will be released, leaving Derrick Henry as their No. 1 running back. Murray has two years of non-guaranteed money left on his contract, which was restructured after he was acquired from the Philadelphia Eagles in a 2016 trade. He was scheduled to make $6.5 million in the 2018 season, and releasing him clears $6.5 million of cap space. Murray, who turned 30 last month, had career lows for rushing yards (659) and yards per carry (3.6) despite starting 15 games in 2017. He was also hampered by injuries and was inactive for the Titans' two playoff games season because of a knee injury. Murray led the NFL in rushing in 2014 while with the Dallas Cowboys, when he ran for 1,845 yards. --The Seattle Seahawks are expected to release cornerbacks Jeremy Lane and Richard Sherman, the Seattle Times reported. Releasing Sherman would save the Seahawks $11 million in salary cap room for 2018, and cutting ties with Lane would save them $4.75 million in cap space. If a trade cannot be arranged in the next few days, Sherman and Lane are likely to be released. --Former Carolina Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart visited the Seahawks, according to a published report. NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported that the Washington native is looking to latch on with the Seahawks after being released from the Panthers on Feb. 28. Stewart reportedly grew up watching the Seahawks and played high school football at Timberline High in Lacey, Wash., 45 miles south of Seattle. --San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Marquise Goodwin agreed to a three-year contract extension, the team announced . Financial terms were not disclosed by the 49ers, but multiple outlets reported that the contract is worth $20.3 million and includes $10 million guaranteed. --Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jarvis Landry officially has signed his franchise tender, multiple outlets reported. Landry was franchised by the Dolphins last month and can now be traded as early as Wednesday. --The Buffalo Bills signed defensive end Owa Odighizuwa to a one-year contract, the team announced Thursday. Financial terms were not disclosed for Odighizuwa, who did not play last season after he was waived by the New York Giants following a four-game suspension for violating the league's policy on performance enhancing substances. A third-round draft pick out of UCLA in 2015, Odighizuwa appeared in 18 games (14 in 2016) with the Giants over his first two seasons, registering a total of six tackles. --NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith said the team that asked former LSU running back Derrius Guice if he likes men should not be permitted to participate in future Scouting Combines. Smith offered his solution to the problem of teams asking players inappropriate questions like that on PFT Live. Guice said in a Wednesday night appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio that a team asked him at the Scouting Combine if he likes men. --Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell vowed to repeat his actions from last year if he doesn't receive a long-term deal. Following the path he traveled in 2017, Bell plans to skip training camp before signing the franchise tag tender the week of the season opener. The 26-year-old noted on Instagram Live that he will not sit out the entire season, however. --The case of former NFL offensive lineman Jonathan Martin became more disturbing Thursday when TMZ Sports reported that Martin had a loaded shotgun, a knife and an ax when he was taken into custody. Based on court documents filed when Martin was taken into custody on Feb. 23, TMZ Sports also reported that Martin had been threatening classmates for years. Last month, Martin had posted an image of a shotgun and shotgun shells on his personal Instagram account. The message included in the post read: "When you're a bully victim & a coward, your options are suicide, or revenge." --The Los Angeles Rams announced that they have signed cornerback Sam Shields, who has not played in an NFL game since the 2016 opener. While with the Green Bay Packers in 2016, Shields, 30, suffered a concussion in the first game and was sidelined for the rest of the season. He was released by the Packers in February 2017, but no team signed him. Shields was a starter for the Packers in 2013, 2014 and 2015, and he was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2014. --The Tampa Bay Buccaneers agreed to terms with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, the Tampa Bay Times reported. No terms of the deal were disclosed for the 35-year-old Fitzpatrick, who appeared in six games with the Buccaneers last season and went 2-1 as a starter in place of Jameis Winston. --Cornerback Demetri Goodson will be staying with the Green Bay Packers after all. Scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next week, Goodson's contract was tolled, according to a report from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Thursday. A player's contract is tolled if he remains on the physically unable to perform list past the sixth regular-season game of the season during the final year of his deal. In essence, it extends another year onto a player's contract. --Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield is planning to visit the Cleveland Browns, New York Giants and New York Jets in the upcoming weeks, multiple outlets reported. Those three NFL teams hold four of the top six picks in the 2018 NFL Draft, which will be held on April 26-28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. --Punter Shane Lechler will enter his 19th NFL season with the Houston Texans, according to a published report. Lechler, 41, and the Texans agreed to a one-year, $1.4 million contract with a $600,000 signing bonus, the Houston Chronicle reported. --Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd had all drug charges against him dropped at a hearing Wednesday in Pittsburgh. The charges against Boyd stemmed from an arrest last July in suburban Pittsburgh, following a crash in which vape pens were discovered in the vehicle, WXPI.com reported. --More than two years after former St. Louis Rams wide receiver Stedman Bailey was shot in the head, leading doctors to say his football career was over, Bailey is attempting a comeback. Bailey, 27, worked out at Marshall's Pro Day on Wednesday, running routes and catching passes from Marshall quarterback Chase Litton. Bailey was shot twice in the head in a drive-by attack on Nov. 24, 2015, while he was a passenger in a car in Miami Gardens, Fla. Bailey played three seasons with the Rams, and his best season was 2014 when he had 30 catches for 435 yards. He played in just eight games in 2015 before being injured in the shooting. --The Washington Redskins will honor the replacement players that helped the team win Super Bowl XXII following the 1987 season. Redskins owner Daniel Snyder will present Super Bowl rings to the replacement players that led the club to a 3-0 mark during the strike, the team announced. The Redskins' third win in that stretch was a 13-7 triumph over the rival Dallas Cowboys, who were playing with regulars, including running back Tony Dorsett and defensive lineman Randy White. The Redskins finished with an 11-4 mark in the regular season in 1987 and went on to post a 42-10 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII. --The Cincinnati Bengals officially announced that they signed free-agent defensive tackle Chris Baker to a one-year contract. The team did not disclose the details of the deal, but NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that Baker will be paid a little more than $3 million. --The Denver Broncos exercised their option on cornerback Chris Harris' contract, Mike Klis of KUSA reported. Per Klis, the decision involved a $1.1 million payout ahead of Harris' $7.4 million salary for the upcoming season. The 28-year-old Harris reportedly also has a $100,000 workout bonus. Harris is signed through 2019 and has a salary of $7.8 million for the final year of the deal. --The Minnesota Vikings are planning to bring back safety Anthony Harris and running back Mack Brown, the Pioneer Press of St. Paul reported. The team will tender one-year contracts to Harris and Brown, who are both exclusive rights free agents. Harris' deal will be worth $705,000 and Brown's is for $630,000. Both players will sign them, the newspaper reported. The team will not tender long snapper Jeff Overbaugh, apparently satisfied with Kevin McDermott's progress following shoulder surgery. --The Atlanta Falcons reworked the contracts of left guard Andy Levitre and linebacker Brooks Reed, according to multiple media outlets. Levitre had his salary slashed $2.5 million, reducing his salary cap number from $8.3 million to $5.6 million, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported, citing NFL Players Association documents. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that Brooks agreed to restructure his contract. Reed had been scheduled to earn $4.5 million.