Giants To Sign DT D.J. Reader
The Giants-D.J. Reader buzz is expected to produce a deal. The sides are finalizing an agreement that will move the veteran to a fourth NFL team, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo report.
Reader visited with the Giants days before they decided to trade Dexter Lawrence, and the parties stayed in contact in the period after the blockbuster swap. With Lawrence sent to Cincinnati for the No. 10 overall pick, Reader will have an opportunity to play a big role in New York.
Although we are past the draft — when the bulk of the signings are one-year pacts — Reader will fetch another multiyear agreement. He is signing a two-year, $12.5MM accord, veteran insider Jordan Schultz tweets. Incentives could push the value higher as well. Reader’s incentive package covers $3MM, Rapoport adds.
John Harbaugh spent four seasons coaching against Reader in the AFC North, as the Bengals rostered the run-stuffing D-lineman from 2020-23. Reader, 31, spent the past two years with the Lions. The Giants have now added Reader and fellow ex-AFC North 30-something Shelby Harris to their post-Lawrence D-tackle group since the draft. Harris, 34, signed a one-year deal worth $3MM. His contract brings $2.66MM guaranteed, per OverTheCap.
Reader (128 career starts) will be expected to be the Giants’ first-string nose tackle, the New York Post’s Paul Schwartz notes. The contract certainly points to such a role being commandeered, as does the 10-year veteran’s body of work. This year’s D-tackle class was considered weak behind John Franklin-Myers, who benefited from both a shallow DT veteran crop and a draft not flooded with high-level options either. This landscape led to Vikings 30-something cap casualties Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave landing on their feet — with two-year deals worth $25MM and $23MM, respectively — soon after releases. The Giants’ changing DT complexion undoubtedly boosted Reader’s value.
Lawrence requested a trade and, despite a Giants attempt to keep him on a revised contract, received one days before the draft. The Giants then focused on other areas in the draft, adding a linebacker, offensive lineman, cornerback and wide receiver in the first three rounds. New York did not address its suddenly glaring DT need until Round 5, when Bobby Jamison-Travis arrived. The team used a third-round pick on DT Darius Alexander last year. He will now see vets Reader, Harris and Leki Fotu represent a quantity-based approach to replacing an All-Pro.
Tied to a two-year, $22MM Lions deal previously, Reader started all 32 games he played with the NFC North club. Pro Football Focus graded Reader 36th and 32nd, respectively, among interior D-linemen in those seasons. He logged a 53% defensive snap rate in each Detroit campaign. Although Reader displayed durability in New York, he suffered two quadricep tears while with Cincinnati. The second one came during his contract year, though it speaks to how Reader is viewed around the league he scored an $11MM-AAV deal coming off that injury.
Reader, whose first quad tear sidelined him five games into the 2020 slate, also missed seven games during the 2022 season. An MCL issue sidelined Reader that year, coming after his key contributions during Cincy’s Super Bowl LVI season. The former Texans draftee played out a four-year, $53MM Bengals contract before heading to Detroit.
The Ravens met with Reader in free agency, before they added Calais Campbell, but the veteran nose will meet up with a host of ex-Ravens under Harbaugh soon. The Giants will hope the 330-pound defender has enough gas in the tank to make an impact on a defense that ranked 31st against the run with Lawrence playing 17 games. This situation may not inspire confidence, given Lawrence’s talent level, but the Giants are bringing in some proven vets after using the Lawrence-generated pick to bolster their O-line (via Francis Mauigoa).
WR Stefon Diggs Found Not Guilty On Assault, Strangulation Charges
A Boston jury acquitted Stefon Diggs on assault and strangulation charges Tuesday, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson reports. This stemmed from an alleged December 2025 incident, with accusations coming from a woman who had worked for the veteran wide receiver.
Diggs, 32, is a free agent after the Patriots cut him one season into a three-year agreement. While Diggs could still be subject to NFL discipline under the league’s personal conduct policy, this verdict should certainly help him land another opportunity ahead of the 2026 season.
A woman, Mila Adams, who had served as a Diggs personal chef accused the Pro Bowl receiver of assaulting her and testified in the jury trial Monday. Diggs was facing a charge of felony strangulation or suffocation as well as a charge of misdemeanor assault and battery.
Adams was allegedly working as a private chef for Diggs when a financial dispute arose. In a police report, she alleged Diggs entered her unlocked bedroom and, as the dispute continued in-person, “smacked her across the face.” Adams then claimed Diggs “tried to choke her using the crook of his elbow around her neck” and that she feared she may pass out as a result. Diggs denied Adams’ claims, pleading not guilty in February, and is now legally in the clear.
Diggs did not testify in the trial, according to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, who notes no visible injuries were present on the accuser’s body when she filed a police report. No photos were taken following the alleged incident. Diggs’ lawyers argued the woman’s claims of an assault were not credible, and the high-profile NFLer’s side won out.
The Patriots moved Diggs’ three-year, $63.5MM contract off their payroll in March, signing Romeo Doubs to a four-year deal worth $68MM ($35MM fully guaranteed). The Pats made a bigger commitment to the four-year Packers contributor, and they have been closely linked to A.J. Brown. No agreement is in place, and we last heard the sides were apart on terms — as the Pats are not believed to have put a first-rounder on the table yet. But New England is widely believed to be the frontrunner for the Philadelphia wideout, who is expected to be traded after June 1 for cap purposes.
Diggs will be looking for a fifth NFL team and fourth club in four years. The Bills traded their previous No. 1 receiver to the Texans in April 2024, and after removing three years from his contract, Houston did not re-sign him following a midseason ACL tear. Diggs rewarded the Patriots, leading the team in receiving (with 1,013 yards) and scoring four touchdowns to help Drake Maye‘s MVP push — which ended in a close runner-up finish. The Pats rode to Super Bowl LX with Diggs as their top target but decided to move on before a $6MM guarantee was due March 13.
Joining Tyreek Hill, Deebo Samuel and DeAndre Hopkins in the 30-something wing of free agent receivers, Diggs should be able to generate interest. A deal coming together, especially with the pass catcher not coming off injury like he was in 2025, in the near future — now that a contract would not affect a team’s 2027 compensatory formula — would not be difficult to envision now that this legal matter is in the past.
Seahawks, Dante Fowler Agree To Deal
The Seahawks’ interest in Dante Fowler has been clear in recent days and weeks. Tuesday has indeed seen an agreement reached between team and player.
Fowler is signing with Seattle, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports. This will be a one-year deal worth up to $5MM, he adds. Fowler visited with the Super Bowl champions last month, and an agreement was still feasible after the draft.
Seattle lost Boye Mafe in free agency, leaving the team in need of at least a rotational presence to replace him. The Seahawks wound up making eight selections in the draft, but none were used on edge rushers. As a result, it comes as little surprise the team has turned to the free agent market deep into the offseason. Fowler will offer plenty in the way of experience along the edge in 2026.
The 31-year-old has racked up 159 appearances and 58 starts over the course of his career. Fowler has seen time with the Jaguars, Rams, Falcons, Cowboys and Commanders across his 10 NFL seasons. In Atlanta and then again in Dallas, he overlapped with Aden Durde, who is currently the Seahawks’ defensive coordinator. Durde’s unit was critical in Seattle’s run to the championship in 2025, and expectations will remain high next year. Fowler, who recorded double-digit sacks as recently as 2024, will look to contribute in the pass rush department.
Seattle still has Uchenna Nwosu, DeMarcus Lawrence and Derick Hall in place as returning edge rushers from last year. The members of that trio will be counted on to remain productive in 2026, but Fowler should have a notable role to play as well. The former No. 3 pick has logged a snap share of 52% or more three times in the 2020s. A workload closer to that of his Cowboys stints will be expected if the Seahawks remain healthy, though the value of this pact certainly points to Fowler being counted on to help replace Mafe’s production.
Seattle entered Tuesday with over $32MM in cap space, making a one-year addition such as this one an affordable option. Fowler has been playing on short-term deals dating back to 2020, so this arrangement will be nothing new to him. He collected $6MM with Dallas last season, and a similar payday should now be in store with the Seahawks.
QB Jacoby Brissett Likely Trade Candidate With Carson Beck In Arizona?
After going 1-11 in 12 starts for the Cardinals in 2025, quarterback Jacoby Brissett has been staying away from team activities as he attempts to land a starter-level extension. According to NFL insider Jason La Canfora, though, Brissett will more likely end up being a trade candidate.
With Brissett in line for Year 2 and a backup passer with starting experience in Gardner Minshew, many thought Arizona would spend the first year of new head coach Mike LaFleur tanking its way to as high a draft pick as possible in 2027 in an attempt to land the best of a better crop of quarterbacks than what was available this year. It was presumed that the Cardinals would utilize this year’s draft to bring in a number of strong supporting pieces to prop up their future rookie starter.
Instead, the team took an interestingly different route. When they reportedly were unable to find an offer they deemed worthy of trading out of the No. 3 overall pick for, they opted to select RB1 Jeremiyah Love. They did get around to landing a plug-and-play starting guard at the top of the second round in Chase Bisontis, but with the first pick of the third round, the Cardinals shocked a number of analysts by drafting Miami quarterback Carson Beck, the third passer to come off the board in the 2026 draft class.
Though he heard his name called two rounds after first overall pick Fernando Mendoza, who beat him head-to-head in the College Football Playoff national championship game four months ago, Beck’s six years in college had some evaluators believing he was the most pro-ready passer in the class. Once Beck was wearing a red hat, an NFL general manager reportedly told La Canfora that Arizona would “move Brissett by the (trade) deadline.”
Even if Brissett isn’t traded away immediately, the theory seems clear. If this GM is correct, at some point, Beck would take over as the starter. As a third-round, pro-ready prospect with the top rookie running back and an improved offensive line, there’s a chance Beck could find success and show potential as the team’s future at the position. If such a hypothetical ends up being too far out of reach to become reality and Beck’s starting run leads them to a poor record and a high draft pick, then the Cardinals would be perfectly in line to draft a first-round quarterback in 2027.
Fueling that idea a bit further, recent whispers that veteran free agent quarterback Aaron Rodgers may be considering Arizona as a future home appear to be nothing more than rumors. ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss reached out to a source recently to gauge the reality of this possibility, and his source claimed it was “not at all” real. If Rodgers stays away and Brissett gets shipped out, Beck may end up starting as a rookie as the Cardinals make moves to find their QB for the future.
Bengals C Connor Lew Expected To Be Ready For Training Camp
Drafting players coming off major injuries is always a tricky proposition.
First is the most basic and obvious issue: a return timeline. Teams do not know exactly when such prospects will be ready to hit the field. They are also unable to participate in pre-draft athletic testing, which is the most reliable way to directly compare physical traits. There is also significant uncertainty about the injury’s lasting effects, making it more difficult to assess players’ short- and long-term trajectory in the pros.
The Bengals, though, were comfortable drafting Auburn center Connor Lew in the fourth round (No. 128) of the 2026 NFL Draft despite a torn ACL suffered last October. There were a number of factors in that decision, starting with Lew himself.
The 6-foot-3, 310 pound center earned the Tigers’ starting job in 2023 as an 18-year-old true freshman and finished the season with Freshman All-American and SEC All-Freshman honors. He then put forth a solid effort in 2024, and in 2025, he was named a team captain of a prestigious SEC program at just 19 years old. He will not turn 21 until the end of training camp, giving him a very appealing developmental trajectory that will build off his already impressive base of blocking skills.
Lew’s recovery is also ahead of schedule, per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, with the expectation of being fully ready to play when training camp begins in late July. At that point, Lew will be about nine months removed from his torn ACL, which is rapidly becoming the standard return timeline for such injuries.
Cincinnati is also in the perfect position to add Lew. They already have a starting center in Ted Karras, who is entering his age-33 season and the last year of his contract. He has been arguably the most consistent part of the Bengals’ offensive line for the last four years, so there is no pressure on Lew to rush back to the field and start right away. That would be difficult – though not impossible – for a rookie center who misses spring practices that are crucial to learning the offense and building chemistry with the quarterback at the line of scrimmage.
Instead, Lew can focus on his rehab and getting integrated into the Bengals’ offense and organization. Even if he misses his current return target, Cincinnati is not counting on him to start (or even contribute) as a rookie. He seems to be the heir apparent to Karras and the likely starter in 2027 and beyond.
That does not mean Lew has to sit during his first year. He only has experience at center, but Karras has spent time at both guard spots in his career. If the rookie is deemed worth of a starting job at any point this season, he could step into the lineup with Karras shifting to guard.
Drafting Lew therefore appears to be a sound process for the Bengals, who are hoping they have found a long-term, high-level center who can be an effective pre-snap partner and post-snap protector for Joe Burrow. Using a late fourth-round pick on a player with so much upside seems to be well worth the risk, and that draft slot also lowers immediate expectations for Lew.
In contrast, the Bears and Chargers also drafted college centers (who lack guard experience) with veteran starters already on their roster, but they used second-round picks to do so. Typically, teams want second-rounders to contribute, if not start, as rookies, but spots for Logan Jones in Chicago and Jake Slaughter in Los Angeles are unclear. Jones lacks the height and length to move to guard, and the Bears are set at the position anyway. Unless Garrett Bradbury is moved or injured, Jones seems likely to sit out his rookie year. With Tyler Biadasz installed as the Chargers’ center for one, if not two years, Slaughter will compete for the Chargers’ left guard job, but transitioning to the NFL while switching positions is easier said than done.
NFL Contract Details: Anderson, Al-Shaair, Greenard, Williams, Reed
Will Anderson‘s eye-popping three-year, $150MM extension turned heads around the NFL last month. The details of the contract have since come out (via OverTheCap) and, as usual, they puts the terms in a very different light.
Crucially, Anderson already had two years and $27MM remaining on his rookie deal, making his new contract a five-year deal worth around $177MM, or $35.4MM per year. That actually comes in below Micah Parsons‘ overall AAV on his contract with the Packers, just under $42MM, but still beats Aidan Hutchinson at $34.2MM. Parsons had substantially more leverage in Green Bay given their trade with the Cowboys, while Anderson and Hutchinson both signed with the teams that drafted them.
For Anderson, the benefit is clear. He will receive just over $55MM over the next two years, almost double what he would have earned on his rookie contract, per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. He will then get paid $122MM from 2028 to 2030.
Another element is the guaranteed money, originally reported at $134MM. Anderson’s 2026 salary and 2027 fifth-year option were already guaranteed, so his extension actually includes $107MM in new guarantees. That is made up of a $32MM signing bonus and fully guaranteed salaries from 2026 to 2028, worth a total of $73MM that is guaranteed at signing. Another $34MM of his 2029 salary will become fully guaranteed if he is on the roster on the fifth day of the 2028 league year. The deal also includes $500k in per game roster bonuses in the last three years.
Interestingly, the Texans declined to use option bonuses or void years in Anderson’s deal. Both are widely used across the NFL to maintain financial flexibility by deferring cap hits into the future. Instead, after $13.2MM and $28.3MM cap hits in 2026 and 2027, Anderson’s cap charge jumps to $46.4MM in 2028 and 2029 and $48.4MM in 2030. Of course, Houston can restructure his deal, though adding void years often requires player consent, which could give Anderson leverage to negotiate another top-of-the-market extension.
Here are the details of some other deals that were signed this offseason:
- The Texans’ other recent extension was for linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair. His $38.75MM in at-signing guarantees is comprised of a $14MM signing bonus and $24.75MM in salary across the next three years, per OverTheCap. Another $7MM of his 2028 salary will become fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the 2028 league year. The deal also $500k in per game roster bonuses in 2026 and $750k in 2027, 2028, and 2029, according to KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson, as well as one void year.
- Jonathan Greenard‘s four-year, $100MM deal with the Eagles includes $50MM in fully guaranteed money, per Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. That is comprised of a $23.5MM signing bonus, a total of $2.56MM in salary in 2026 and 2027, and a $22.9MM option bonus in 2027. As with all of Philadelphia’s contracts, Greenard is set to receive option bonuses in each year of his deal, due at the beginning of the regular season, and he can earn an additional $1.5MM with first-team All-Pro selections in 2026, 2027, and 2028. Florio additionally notes that the deal is effectively a $12MM raise across the next two years over his previous deal with the Vikings, which seems like something Minnesota could have accommodated. Instead, they sent Greenard to Philly, where he gets his desired payday.
- The 49ers replaced Trent Williams‘ existing deal with a two-year, $50MM contract with four void years and $48.5MM in guaranteed money, of which $37MM is fully guaranteed at signing, per OverTheCap. He received a $22.2MM signing bonus and a total of $14.8MM in salary and bonuses in 2026 and 2027. After his cap figure rose by $7.5MM when the team declined his 2026 option bonus, Williams’ cap hit has dropped from $46.34MM to $20MM as a result of the new deal, per NBC Sports’ Matt Maiocco. The deal has some unique aspects, including a $11.5MM roster bonus due in 2028 that is fully guaranteed unless Williams holds out or otherwise misses time in the offseason. The 49ers can also convert the 2027 roster bonus into a prorated option bonus. The contract is designed to be terminated in 2028 – when Williams turns 40 –with a post-June 1 designation. If that is not done by the 10th day of the league year, he will be owed a guaranteed $50.175MM roster bonus in 2029. The expectation in San Francisco seems to be that the three-time All-Pro will retire after the 2027 season.
- Jayden Reed‘s new deal with the Packers includes $20MM in guaranteed money, comprised of a $16.5MM signing bonus and a $3.5MM roster bonus. That is a below-market figure, but in line with Green Bay’s contract precedent – the team rarely metes out guarantees beyond the first year of the deal. Reed will receive $1.3MM, $9.05MM, and $10.05MM in salary from 2027 to 2029, per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky, with $500k in workout bonuses in each year. He is also due roster bonuses worth $2MM in 2027 and $1MM in 2028. Of particular note is the inclusion of $5.85MM in per game roster bonuses from 2027 to 2029, the highest of any Packer, which mitigates some injury risk for the team.
Titans OL Far From Set
The Titans offensive line is most likely set on the outside with right tackle JC Latham and left tackle Dan Moore Jr. returning from last year’s starting lineup, and they’ll be joined by left guard Peter Skoronski, who had a breakout 2025 campaign. After releasing center Lloyd Cushenberry III and allowing veteran guard Kevin Zeitler‘s contract to expire, though, the other inside spots are far less secure at this point.
According to ESPN’s Turron Davenport, former Bengals starter Cordell Volson and last year’s fifth-round pick Jackson Slater will battle for the starting right guard job. Volson presumably has the inside track on the job after spending nearly three years as a starter on the left side in Cincinnati. He shouldn’t have any issue switching sides since he started games at left tackle, right tackle, and right guard in his college years at North Dakota State.
Slater’s collegiate experience at Sacramento State came all on the left side, as did his only snaps on offense for the Titans in his rookie year, which all came in a meaningless Week 18 matchup. Davenport believes that Day 3 additions from this year’s draft — fifth-round Arkansas guard Fernando Carmona and sixth-round Indiana center Pat Coogan — could also factor into the competition of this battle. Carmona started three years at left tackle in Fayetteville before making the move to left guard for the Razorbacks, and Coogan started a year at left guard for Notre Dame two years before transferring to the Hoosiers.
Tennessee also signed interior swingman Austin Schlottmann back in early March, but he appears to be the favorite to win the starting center job, though he has never held a role in the NFL as a full-time starter. Over his eight years in the league, Schlottmann has only started 18 of 85 game appearances. He started six games at right guard and one at center over three years in Denver, seven games at center over the next two in Minnesota, and four games at center for the Giants last year after only appearing in one game in 2024.
Schlottmann’s competition for the job is currently former Bengal Trey Hill and Coogan. Hill, originally a sixth-round pick himself, hasn’t started an NFL game since his rookie year in 2021 and has only appeared in one game in the past three seasons — a three-snap special teams appearance in 2024. Coogan is joining his third team in as many years after transferring from Notre Dame to Indiana for a championship run last year. Following his season at left guard, Coogan started a season at center for the Fighting Irish before snapping the ball for a year to the Heisman-winning No. 1 overall pick, Fernando Mendoza.
Despite Coogan’s success on paper, he was a Day 3 pick for a reason. With his general size and strength, he looks the part of an NFL center, but he projects as a backup early on, until he can be a bit more disciplined with his pad-level. Hill has been relegated to a practice squad role in recent years, and it’s hard to picture him making Week 1 his first start in five years. The job appears to be Schlottmann’s at the moment.
The inside tracks for Volson and Schlottmann could be altered if the roster continues to change, and it doesn’t sound like the team is done making adjustments. Following the draft, Titans assistant general manager Dave Ziegler told the press (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk), “There’s a level of competition that’s still going to be taking place there…we’ll continue to look to improve. Free agency is over and the draft is over, but there’s still an element of different areas of the team we will continue to add competition to. Offensive line will be one of those positions.”
Having seen so little of a new group that has such limited experience, head coach Brian Daboll is far from making any decisions. While he claims to like what he’s seeing from the guys that have come in and gotten to work so far, he knows they’re far away from playing meaningful football in pads, and they’ll learn more when those days come along. For now, they’ll continue to develop and compete, but concerning the starting five, “all that will play itself out come training camp,” as Daboll puts it.
Bucs’ Jacob Parrish To Compete For Outside CB Job
After cornerback Jacob Parrish showed off his inside-outside versatility at Kansas State, the Buccaneers added him in the third round of the 2025 draft. The 84th overall pick wound up spending most of his rookie season in the slot, but he could take on new responsibilities in Year 2. Parrish will compete for a starting job on the outside, according to Jenna Laine of ESPN.com.
The Buccaneers’ secondary has undergone a couple of notable changes this offseason, which could lead to a different role for the 5-foot-10, 198-pound Parrish. They lost starting corner Jamel Dean to the Steelers in free agency and did not pick up any real replacement(s) on the open market. The Dean-less Buccaneers entered the draft with Zyon McCollum and Benjamin Morrison on the outside and Parrish in the slot, but they went on to grab Keionte Scott in the fourth round. Scott logged a large amount of snaps as a nickel corner during a four-year college career divided between Auburn and Miami.
The addition of Scott could lead to more work on the outside for Parrish, who played 127 snaps on the boundary last year and amassed 496 in the slot. During a 17-game, five-start campaign, Parrish finished second among Tampa Bay’s corners in defensive snap share (71.46%), Only McCollum was on the field more than Parrish, who racked up 76 tackles, seven passes defensed, two interceptions and a pair of sacks. He ended the year as Pro Football Focus’ 31st-ranked corner among 112 qualifiers, handily beating out McCollum (51st) and Morrison (108th), and earned a place on the All-Rookie Team.
McCollum, who started in all 30 appearances from 2024-25, inked a three-year, $48MM extension last September. That came several months after the Bucs drafted Parrish and Morrison. They used a second-rounder on Morrison, the 53rd overall choice, but a hip injury limited him to 10 games and three starts. If Morrison has a healthier second season, the club figures to bank on him, Parrish, McCollum and Scott for plenty of snaps.
With their offseason heavy lifting likely done, the Buccaneers will expect their current group of corners to help lead an improved pass defense in 2026. The Bucs were a lowly 27th against the pass last season, which helps explain their 8-9 finish and their failure to clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2019.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/5/26
Today’s mid- to late-round rookie signings from the 2026 NFL Draft:
Denver Broncos
- LB Red Murdock (seventh round, Buffalo)
Kansas City Chiefs
- RB Emmett Johnson (fifth round, Nebraska)
The Broncos have secured the signature of Mr. Irrelevant who received a $122K signing bonus, per Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post. Johnson joins a crowded backfield in Kansas City, where he’ll work for reps behind free agent addition — and Super Bowl LX MVP — Kenneth Walker, all the time competing against another free agent signing in Emari Demercado and last year’s draft pick, Brashard Smith.
Kenneth Walker Knew He Would Leave Seahawks In Free Agency
Although running back Kenneth Walker posted his second 1,000-yard regular season and then took home Super Bowl LX MVP honors, the Seahawks did not re-sign the four-year veteran in free agency. Walker ended up joining the Chiefs on a three-year, $43.05MM deal when the negotiating period opened March 9. Leaving Seattle did not come as a surprise to Walker, who told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that he saw it coming months ago.
“I would say probably, if I’m being honest, probably like sometime during the season,” Walker said. “You know, things ain’t working out how I was expecting to, and that’s all right. It worked out for the team. So sometime during the season and then we get to free agency, pretty much knowing like you weren’t gonna be there no more.”
As the Seahawks were preparing to face the Patriots in the Super Bowl, general manager John Schneider said he “would love” to keep Walker. The 25-year-old went on to further boost his stock with a 135-yard performance against the Pats, helping the Seahawks to a 29-13 romp.
Walker made it known after the Super Bowl that he hoped to stay in Seattle, but it is unclear if the reigning champions even made him an offer. Without a long-term deal, the Seahawks still could have attempted to retain Walker for another year via the $14.29MM franchise tag (as the Jets did with Breece Hall) or the $11.32MM transition tag. They deemed those prices too rich, though, and allowed their former second-round pick to walk away for a significant raise.
Walker now sits fourth among RBs in total value, average salary ($14.35MM) and guarantees ($28.7MM). The Chiefs expect him to boost a running game that ranked a lackluster 25th in the league last year. Meanwhile, several weeks after Walker left, the Seahawks spent a first-rounder on his replacement, Jadarian Price. As the 32nd pick in the draft, Price’s fully guaranteed rookie deal will check in at approximately $16.73MM over four years.
With the regular season still four months away, Price, free agent addition Emanuel Wilson, George Holani and Kenny McIntosh are among the Seahawks’ healthy backfield options. They also have Zach Charbonnet, who shared snaps with Walker over the previous three years, but his status for the start of 2026 is uncertain after he tore his ACL in the divisional round.