NFL Notes: Cowboys Sign Former Eagle Carroll; Patriots Trade for WR Cooks

A person familiar with the deal says the New Orleans Saints have agreed to trade receiver Brandin Cooks to the New England Patriots.

The Patriots sent their 2017 first-round selection and a third-round pick to New Orleans for Cooks while the Saints will send back a fourth-round pick, said the person who spoke Friday to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the teams have not announced the deal.

In Cooks, 23, the Patriots add another speedy and productive young receiver to a group that already includes Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell and veterans Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola.

Cooks has appeared in all 16 regular-season games for New Orleans the past two years and is coming off back-to-back 1,100-yard receiving seasons, in which he also had 17 touchdowns.

Meanwhile, the Saints are stockpiling draft picks and will have five selections in the first three rounds in April.

Cowboys: Former Eagle Carroll signs three-year deal
A person with knowledge of the deals says the Dallas Cowboys are adding two more defensive players in free agency in cornerback Nolan Carroll and defensive end Damontre Moore.

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Carroll, who comes over from NFC East rival Philadelphia, is getting a $10 million, three-year contract, the person told The Associated Press on Friday on condition of anonymity because the deals haven't been announced.

Moore, a 2013 third-round pick out of Texas A&M and former high school player in the Dallas area, is getting a one-year contract. The Cowboys worked him out during training camp last year but didn't sign him.

The 24-year-old Moore has 10 sacks in four seasons, including 5 as a second-year player with the New York Giants, who drafted him.

Carroll has eight interceptions in seven seasons, including three in the 30-year-old's three years with the Eagles.

Redskins: Pryor signs 1-year contract
The Washington Redskins have signed wide receiver Terrelle Pryor to a one-year contract.

Pryor spent the past two seasons with the Cleveland Browns after breaking into the NFL as a quarterback.

The 27-year-old had 77 catches for 1,007 yards and four touchdowns last season. He also took a handful of snaps at quarterback.

Browns: RGIII released after one season 
CLEVELAND -- A person familiar with the decision says the Cleveland Browns are releasing quarterback Robert Griffin III after one injury-marred season.

Griffin is being let go one day before he would have been due a $750,000 roster bonus, said the person who spoke Friday to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team has not announced the move.

After he was waived by Washington, Griffin signed with the Browns last March hoping to revive his career. However, the 27-year-old broke his right shoulder in the season opener and missed 11 games.

Griffin returned late in the year and led the Browns to their only win.

Griffin's departure comes one day after the Browns acquired quarterback Brock Osweiler in a trade with Houston. Osweiler, though, is not viewed as Cleveland's long-term answer at quarterback.

The Browns have the assets to make another deal for a QB or take one high in this year's draft.

Redskins: Cousins signs franchise deal
WASHINGTON -- Kirk Cousins' agent says the Washington Redskins' quarterback has signed his contract for the exclusive franchise tag.

Mike McCartney tweeted the news on Friday morning, 10 days after the team placed the tag on Cousins, guaranteeing him a salary of about $24 million for the 2017 season.

The Redskins did not immediately confirm that Cousins had signed the deal.

Cousins made nearly $20 million last season under a tag. He is the first QB in NFL history to sign franchise tags in consecutive years, but his awkward relationship is still in flux with the team that drafted him in the fourth round the same year it took Robert Griffin III with the No. 2 overall pick.

The Redskins - who fired general manager Scot McCloughan on Thursday, two years into his four-year deal, without saying why - now have until July 15 to try to work out a long-term deal with Cousins. They also still have the option of trading the quarterback, who has broken the franchise record for passing yards in each of his two seasons as Washington's starter. (see full story)

Raiders: Smith denies public intoxication 
SAN FRANCISCO -- Suspended Oakland Raiders player Aldon Smith claims he was not detained for public intoxication Thursday.

Authorities say Smith was detained in San Francisco after an SUV he was riding in crashed into an undercover police car, injuring two officers in front of police headquarters.

Police say they held Smith for his own safety and released him once he was sober. Smith will not be charged.

Smith told KRON on Thursday that he was visiting a friend at the station.

Smith told reporters he does not want to be seen as criminal and he's "never hurt anyone."

The woman driving the SUV was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving.

Smith is on a one-year suspension for violating the NFL's rules on substance abuse.

Smith's agent didn't immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment.

Vikings: Riley Reiff signs
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Vikings have signed former Detroit Lions offensive tackle Riley Reiff.

The Vikings announced the deal on Friday. The five-year veteran started 69 games for the Lions, including 48 at left tackle and 14 at right tackle.

Adding the former first-round draft choice was a huge priority for the Vikings, who finished a disappointing 8-8 last season thanks in large part to one of the worst offensive lines in the league. It is not immediately clear if Reiff will play on the left or the right side in Minnesota because the Vikings are continuing to look at bringing in additional help on the line.

Reiff grew up in South Dakota and played in college at Iowa.

Cardinals: Chandler Jones signs 5-year deal
TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Cardinals and outside linebacker Chandler Jones have agreed to a five-year contract.

The agreement comes after the Cardinals placed the franchise tag on Jones to prevent him from becoming a free agent.

The Cardinals acquired Jones in a trade with New England before last season, and general manager Steve Keim had said all along that the team would sign the player to a long-term contract.

Jones had 11 sacks last season with the Cardinals, along with four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and 15 tackles for loss. He had 12 sacks for the Patriots in 2015, making him one of three players with double-digit sacks in each of the past two seasons.

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