HEADLINES

Month: January 2025

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/2/25

January 2nd, 2025 at 7:25pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Detroit Lions

New England Patriots

  • Waived: DT Haggai Ndubuisi

Seattle Seahawks

The Patriots signed Haggai Ndubuisi off the Commanders practice squad just yesterday, but the team is already waiving the defensive tackle. As ESPN’s Mike Reiss notes, Ndubuisi is being waived with a non-football illness designation, an indication that something popped up during the player’s physical.

Brady Russell landed on IR today after the tight end dealt with a foot injury for much of the season. The special teamer got into 11 games with the Seahawks in 2024. In his place, the team signed John Rhys Plumlee from the practice squad. The rookie was listed by the Seahawks as a WR, but the former UCF QB served as an occasional signal-caller on Seattle’s scout team.

Jets Complete GM Interview With Louis Riddick

January 2nd, 2025 at 6:14pm CST by Ben Levine

The Jets have completed their fourth GM interview. The team announced that they interviewed ESPN analyst Louis Riddick earlier today. We heard last month that the Jets were planning to interview the former NFC East exec.

Riddick played nearly a decade in the NFL before spending time in Washington and Philadelphia’s front office. More recently, the 55-year-old has been serving as an analyst on ESPN, but his decade-long media role hasn’t stopped him from garnering GM interviews.

After interviewing for the Giants job in 2017, Riddick was an especially popular name in 2021, when he interviewed for GM jobs with the Jaguars, Lions and Texans. He left that hiring cycle without a gig, and after meeting with the Steelers in 2022, Riddick hasn’t been mentioned in the GM carousel over the past couple of years.

Now, he’s had a chance to sell himself to former Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum and former Vikings honcho Rick Spielman, who are running the organization’s GM and HC searches. Veteran executive Phil Savage has served as the team’s interim general manager since Joe Douglas was canned back in November.

Riddick marks the fourth candidate to interview for the Jets job. Thomas Dimitroff, Jon Robinson, and Jim Nagy previously met Jets brass about the opening.

Patriots Expected To Prioritize WR, OL This Offseason

January 2nd, 2025 at 5:45pm CST by Ben Levine

The Patriots offense has struggled mightily throughout the 2024 campaign, ranking towards the bottom of the league in scoring and yardage. Unsurprisingly, the organization will prioritize two offensive positional groupings this offseason. Christopher Price of the Boston Globe believes the team will target wide receivers and offensive linemen via the draft, free agency, and trades.

Patriots wideouts have had to endure Jacoby Brissett‘s underwhelming starting stint and Drake Maye‘s growing pains, but no one in the room has established themselves as a definitive difference maker. Demario Douglas has somewhat separated himself from his position mates, as the former sixth-round pick has built on a solid rookie campaign to lead New England WRs in receptions (63) and receiving yards (587), and touchdowns (three) as a sophomore.

New England hasn’t gotten much from their two rookie wideouts. Second-round pick Ja’Lynn Polk has been limited to 12 catches, while fourth-round receiver Javon Baker has been limited to 51 offensive snaps. Kayshon Boutte and Kendrick Bourne do provide some worthy depth, but the team clearly needs a WR1 to pair with Maye.

That solution could easily come via the draft, as the Patriots are currently in prime position to select Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter. The organization could also easily look to free agency, especially since they should rank towards the top of the league in practical cap space. The Patriots have already been connected to Bengals star Tee Higgins, and the front office showed a willingness to pay for the position following their failed pursuit of Calvin Ridley last offseason.

The offensive line has allowed 51 sacks this season (fifth-worst in the NFL), and besides guard Mike Onwenu (and perhaps injured center David Andrews), the Patriots will be looking to improve every starting spot this offseason. Guard Trey Smith will likely lead the OL class, but the team should still have plenty of options to choose from at offensive tackle. The draft also remains an option for a sure-thing starter, although that would surely require the Patriots to trade back from their projected number-one pick.

The front office can rest easy knowing they have a handful of positional groupings handled. Maye has shown encouraging flashes during his rookie campaign, and the team has RB Rhamondre Stevenson and TE Hunter Henry signed to long-term deals.

Browns To Start Bailey Zappe In Week 18

January 2nd, 2025 at 2:12pm CST by Sam Robinson

Make it four starting quarterbacks for the Browns this season, marking a second straight slate in which that rarely reached number will be in the equation for Cleveland. It will be Bailey Zappe taking over in Week 18, according to The Associated Press’ Tom Withers.

Zappe will replace Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who has struggled since replacing Jameis Winston. Although Winston suited up in Week 17, he did not play. The Browns’ draft standing, No. 3 overall, is worth reminding here, as is the fact the team is expected to retain both Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry. With the two power brokers not needing to make moves to preserve their jobs (at least, that is not the expectation), a Zappe-over-Winston choice would make more sense. For what it’s worth, Winston has practiced in a limited capacity due to a shoulder injury.

Stefanski said both Zappe and Thompson-Robinson will play against the Ravens, who are up to 20-point favorites in the teams’ Week 18 rematch. Cleveland upended Baltimore during Winston’s first start after Deshaun Watson‘s injury. The Browns benched Winston after a turnover-heavy Week 15 showing, but Thompson-Robinson has not played well since. For his career, Thompson-Robinson has put together a 1-10 TD-INT ratio, which is next to impossible in this passer-friendly era. The 2023 fifth-round pick has thrown six picks and no TD passes this season.

Zappe will be the 40th the starting quarterback since the Browns’ 1999 reboot, as Withers notes. He finished last season as the Patriots’ starter, replacing a declining Mac Jones. Zappe has made eight career starts, going 4-4 in those games. The Browns initially signed Zappe off the Chiefs’ practice squad following Watson’s October Achilles tear. Cleveland then waived Zappe and re-signed him not long after.

A 2022 fourth-round pick who broke Joe Burrow‘s Division I-FBS touchdown pass record by firing 61 in Western Kentucky’s pass-happy offense in 2021, Zappe did not make the Patriots’ 53-man roster this season. That led him to Kansas City’s practice squad. He is not under contract in Cleveland beyond this season, but this matchup with Baltimore could help his cause. Though, the Browns will be looking elsewhere for a player to be a viable option as a Watson replacement — perhaps in Round 1 — after the season.

One of four 3-13 teams entering the season finale, the Browns sit behind the Patriots and Titans for the top pick. The Pats host a Bills team that has nothing to play for, while the Titans host a Texans team locked into the AFC’s No. 4 seed. With the Ravens gunning for the AFC’s No. 3 spot via the AFC North title, the Browns have the best chance to lose among this trio. The cards look to be breaking Cleveland’s way, even though this was certainly not where this year’s team was expected to be at the season’s outset. The Browns will at least have a high pick when they make their way back to the first round — after three years of missing out due to the Watson trade.

Aaron Jones Wants To Re-Sign With Vikings

January 2nd, 2025 at 12:15pm CST by Sam Robinson

Aaron Jones‘ seven Packers seasons featured regular roles but saw the talented running back cede plenty of carries to the likes of Jamaal Williams and AJ Dillon. Despite having just turned 30, the veteran back has held an unquestioned starting post with the Vikings.

The eighth-year performer has already surpassed his career high in carries (245), producing his fourth 1,000-yard rushing season. Although the Packers were not exactly proven wrong for their Josh Jacobs signing, Jones has fared well with a division rival — one that has soared to a 14-2 record. Jones has joined Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson in one of the NFL’s best skill-position armadas.

[RELATED: Vikings Likely To Receive Calls On J.J. McCarthy]

Agreeing to a one-year, $7MM deal, Jones joins Sam Darnold as key Vikings cogs unsigned for 2025. With Darnold perhaps not quite as likely to see free agency thanks to his strong performance this season, Jones is not interested in testing the market again, preferring to stay in the Twin Cities and conclude an NFC North-only career.

“I hope to be here until the end of my career,” Jones said, via ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert. “Honestly, this is an excellent place.”

Packers GM Brian Gutekunst had said Jones was in the Packers’ 2024 plans, but that was contingent on the former fifth-round find taking a substantial pay cut. Jones balked and hit the market, landing in Minnesota soon after Green Bay’s Jacobs agreement. Jones had already accepted a Packers trim in 2023, playing a central role — via five straight 100-yard rushing games to close out last season — in the team journeying to the divisional round and pushing the eventual NFC champion 49ers once there. Jones is all set to play in another playoff game, perhaps after a first-round bye — which would be the Vikings’ first since 2017 — should the team upend the Lions on Sunday night.

The Vikings are projected to hold plenty of cap space come March, sitting on more than $76MM. That ranks sixth leaguewide. Though, if the Vikings truly entertain franchise-tagging Darnold, their roster math changes considerably. A quarterback tag would cost upwards of $40MM, and although the Vikes’ cap-space number will look different by the start of the new league year than it does now, that is a significant chunk of space that would disappear in the event Minnesota keeps its surging quarterback off the market.

Even post-30, Jones would presumably have suitors elsewhere as well. He has amassed 1,093 rushing yards (4.5 per carry) and added 378 through the air. With 22 receiving yards against Detroit, Jones will produce just the second 400-yard receiving season of his career. While he has also matched his career high in fumbles, with five, the former Packers regular also will draw interest on a market depleted by the recent extensions given to Chuba Hubbard, Rhamondre Stevenson and James Conner. Alvin Kamara also being off the board, thanks to a Saints re-up that ensured he will not be cut (which had loomed as a likely scenario on his previous deal), also stands to benefit Jones.

The Vikings have Ty Chandler signed for one more season, but the team has used Cam Akers — acquired via trade for the second straight season — over the homegrown back in recent weeks. Akers is unsigned beyond this season. It will be interesting to see if Jones receives an offer to stay or is allowed to test the market once again.

Mike Hilton Wants To Re-Sign With Bengals

January 2nd, 2025 at 10:34am CST by Adam La Rose

For the past four seasons, Mike Hilton has been a regular presence in the Bengals’ secondary. The pending free agent is looking to continue his career, but it remains to be seen if that will happen in Cincinnati.

“I’ve been here for a long time and really watched this place change a lot,” Hilton said (via Sports Illustrated’s Jay Morrison). “Obviously I would love to finish my career here. But the nature of the business is you never know. When that time comes, we’ll figure it out.”

The former UDFA spent four seasons in Pittsburgh, including the 2020 campaign in which he played on a restricted free agent tender. Hilton hoped to sign a long-term pact, but securing one required an intra-divisional move. The Bengals inked him to a four-year, $24MM deal and he has gone on to provide sold value since then.

Hilton will be playing his age-31 season in 2025, though, and the Bengals could look to younger options as potential replacements. The team has recent draftees Dax Hill, Cam Taylor-Britt and DJ Turner in place as perimeter corners (although Taylor-Britt is a pending free agent), but Hilton has been a mainstay in the slot throughout his time in Cincinnati. As Morrison notes, that has included a lighter workload on third downs in particular this season, a potential signal the team could go in a different direction this offseason.

A veteran of 122 games and 55 starts, Hilton has remained consistent during his Bengals run. The Ole Miss product has recorded one or two interceptions in each of his past four seasons, adding between four and eight pass deflections each year along the way. Hilton’s coverage statistics and evaluation from PFF has also remained steady for the most part, although 2024 (a season in which the Bengals have collectively struggled on defense) has seen a regression.

Cincinnati is currently projected to be near the top of the league in cap space for the offseason, but the team has a number of pending financial priorities. A monster extension for Ja’Marr Chase and (if possible) a long-term deal for fellow receiver Tee Higgins are among them, but the Bengals will also need to make a decision on retaining Hilton or allowing him to depart. It will be interesting to see if the team reciprocates his desire for a new agreement. In any case, though, Hilton is not considering retirement at this point.

“I’ve still got two or three [years] in me,” he added. “That’s my honest opinion. I feel like there’s really not anybody who can do what I do. And I feel like that brings a lot of value to some teams.”

Tua Tagovailoa Uncertain For Week 18

January 2nd, 2025 at 9:46am CST by Sam Robinson

JANUARY 2: McDaniel’s latest update on Tagovailoa’s situation notes that Huntley remains on track to start (h/t ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques). Changes could take place over the coming days, but an increased practice participation on Tagovailoa’s part will likely be needed for him to suit up in Week 18.

DECEMBER 30: Although the Bengals kept their season alive by beating the Broncos in overtime Saturday, the Dolphins are ahead of the AFC North team in the wild-card pecking order. It will still take the Broncos losing to a Chiefs team prepared to sit starters in Week 18, but the Dolphins would advance if they won and Denver’s losing streak hit three.

Miami’s chances of winning in Week 18 do involve a Jets team that did not account itself well in Buffalo on Sunday, but the Dolphins are far from certain to have their quarterback available in their regular-season finale.

Tua Tagovailoa missed Week 17 with a hip injury, and although the Dolphins navigated a Browns team starting the potentially overmatched Dorian Thompson-Robinson at QB, the AFC East club may have secured a playoff spot by now had Tagovailoa not landed on IR earlier this season. Mike McDaniel‘s club fared poorly while its starter missed time due to a concussion, and the hip injury he sustained recently is not healing as the team hoped.

McDaniel said Tagovailoa’s status is in a “gray area” for Week 18 and that he was not medically cleared to play in Cleveland, via NFL.com’s Cameron Wolfe. The Dolphins started Tyler Huntley against the Browns. After a 22-for-26 performance that included 225 yards and a touchdown, he may hear his number called once again.

Miami is now 2-4 in games Tagovailoa did not finish due to injury this season, falling toward the bottom of the league in offense during the starter’s initial absence. Huntley started both wins, with Skylar Thompson also at the controls in a Dolphins loss this season. The former multiyear Ravens backup, Huntley has enjoyed more time to get up to speed in McDaniel’s offense since Tua’s concussion-generated IR trip. But this is becoming all too familiar territory for the Dolphins, who are now committed long term to their southpaw starter.

Tagovailoa has missed five games this season, this coming after he missed six (counting a wild-card game) in 2022. The former No. 5 overall pick also missed time due to injury in 2020 and 2021, and his draft status was affected by the significant hip injury he suffered to close out his Alabama career. Tua played all 18 Dolphins games last season, helping him secure a four-year extension that came with $93.2MM guaranteed at signing and $167.2MM guaranteed in total. This season, however, has not brought the Dolphins much comfort on the availability front.

If the Broncos do slip up against a diminished version of the two-time defending champs, the prospect of Tagovailoa’s playoff ability would stand to come up. For now, the fifth-year passer has some time to recover. But the nature of this injury brings cause for concern given his past.

Tyler Lockett Plans To Play In 2025; WR’s Seahawks Future In Doubt

January 2nd, 2025 at 9:01am CST by Adam La Rose

Tyler Lockett has spent his entire 10-year career with the Seahawks, and his tenure with the team will include at least one more game. The veteran wideout is aware he could be on the move this offseason, but he has given no thought to retirement at this point.

Lockett and the Seahawks agreed to a restructure last March which upped his earnings for 2024 but left him on track to carry a cap hit of nearly $31MM next season. Without any guaranteed salary on the books for 2024, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic notes the strong possibility remains Lockett will be let go in a cost-cutting move this offseason (subscription required). D.K. Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba are on track to remain in Seattle for years to come, but Lockett recently acknowledged Week 18 could mark his Seahawks finale.

The 32-year-old has been a staple in the passing game since his arrival and early seasons as a complement to Doug Baldwin. Lockett has since gone on to form a strong tandem with Metcalf, but the decision to add Smith-Njigba in the first round of the 2023 draft signaled Seattle’s trio at the WR spot would soon become a tandem. Indeed, Lockett has failed to see triple-digit targets for the first time since 2018 this season, and his 572 yards and two touchdowns fall well short of his previous production. The former third-rounder knows his role has been reduced in 2024 (something which could impact his free agent market), but he is content with that as his Seattle tenure likely draws to a close.

“If there’s any way that I want to win as a person, I want to win as a team,” Lockett said (via Dugar). “When it comes to me getting the ball, I want it to be something that’s natural and not forced or not me having to say, ‘Hey, man, give me the ball.’”

Metcalf drew trade interest leading up to November’s deadline, but to no surprise the Seahawks did not consider moving him. The Ole Miss product is only under contract for 2025 as things stand, and with no locked in salary and a similarly high cap hit on tap an extension could be in store relatively soon. Smith-Njigba’s rookie contract runs for another two seasons, meanwhile, and the fifth-year option could keep him under team control through at least 2027.

Lockett could have value to any number of suitors eyeing a receiver addition in the offseason, although his declining production will limit his earning potential on his next contract. It will be interesting to see if he and the Seahawks attempt to work out a new arrangement after the campaign, but in the event he is released he will soon need to turn his attention to his first trip to free agency.

Aaron Rodgers Unlikely To Have Strong Free Agent Market?

January 1st, 2025 at 11:25pm CST by Adam La Rose

At least one more game remains in Aaron Rodgers‘ Jets career, but it would come as no surprise if he were to be let go after the season ends. Retirement could ensue after that, but if the future Hall of Famer were to continue playing he may not have a long list of suitors.

Rodgers tore his Achilles in his Jets debut, sidelining him for the remainder of the 2023 campaign. He (along with head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas) remained in place for the start of the current season. Both members of the previous regime have since been fired, though, and on the whole Rodgers’ play has not matched expectations. A new pair of decision-makers will be in place well before the start of the 2025 season, and a reset under center would be an understandable approach leaving Rodgers with an uncertain outlook. He and the team have not discussed what will happen once the season ends, but he is well aware a trip to free agency could be looming.

If that turns out to be the case, Rodgers would certainly be a notable name on the market. Given his age (41) and underwhelming output this season, however, teams could prefer to look elsewhere at the position. As Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post notes, some around the league believe a tepid market could be in place for the four-time MVP given his level of play and the off-the-field matters which have increasingly become an aspect of his career.

“No way are [the Jets] bringing him back,” an anonymous general manager told La Canfora. “And I don’t see anyone signing him to be their starter. The Giants won’t do it. The Saints won’t do it. The Raiders have to go young. Does he take a huge pay cut and fight for a job somewhere? Can you see him doing that? Where’s the fit?”

As usual, several teams are in position to make notable moves at the quarterback spot this offseason, and a number of veterans will no doubt be on the move shortly. With questions over the upside of many passers in the upcoming draft class, more emphasis could be placed on finding short-term answers under center. Any number of teams could show interest in Rodgers as a result, but a short-term pact with a value well below the top of the QB market would be expected in that case.

The longtime Packer has made it clear his preference would be to remain with the Jets for 2025, but a post-June 1 release would yield considerable cap savings (next year in particular) while allowing New York to start over at the quarterback spot. It is uncertain at this point if the team will take that route, but if so Rodgers’ future would consist of hanging up his cleats or attempting to find a new team for the second time in his career.

Teams Expected To Call Vikings On QB J.J. McCarthy

January 1st, 2025 at 11:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

As Sam Darnold has become the latest quarterback to bounce back after an underwhelming stretch, the Vikings have both enjoyed the benefits while finding themselves in a bit of a predicament from a long-term sense. As Darnold may be less likely to hit free agency due to the season he has put together, J.J. McCarthy continues his rehab from a summer knee injury.

Centering their offseason around finding a long-term quarterback to succeed Kirk Cousins, the Vikings both acquired a second first-round pick (from the Texans) and traded up one spot — without using that second first-rounder — for McCarthy at No. 10 overall. McCarthy has undergone two knee surgeries to address the meniscus tear he suffered during the preseason. While the Michigan alum recovers, the former No. 3 overall pick taking Minnesota’s snaps has been a revelation in Kevin O’Connell‘s offense.

Early-December reports suggested Darnold was unlikely to remain with the Vikings beyond this season, but a subsequent offering indicated the team does hope to keep its current starter. The latter avenue would seemingly close off McCarthy’s future in the Twin Cities — or at least significantly alter it — months after it began. Days after that report, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter noted during an ESPN Radio appearance teams will “definitely” inquire about McCarthy’s status.

Pegging McCarthy as a talent who could have been the top-rated QB prospect in the 2025 draft class, Schefter adds the Vikings could not only recoup a first-round pick in a trade but also collect additional assets. As our Ely Allen reminded Tuesday, evaluators are not viewing the ’25 group of QBs in the same way they assessed 2024’s. The supply-and-demand problem that grips the NFL annually at this position figures to be a bigger storyline in 2025 than it was in 2024.

This is still at the hypothetical stage, as it would effectively mean bailing on a high-end prospect one year into his career. But Darnold has changed the equation this season. His performance in O’Connell’s offense has driven the Vikes to 14-2 — their best record since a record-setting 1998 season — and it would be easier for the franchise to justify a second contract that perhaps it would another team who bets big on the ex-Jet, Panther and 49er in free agency. Throwing 35 touchdown passes, Darnold sits fifth in that category and fifth in passer rating. He checks in fourth in yards per attempt (8.2), though QBR slots him 13th. A robust free agent market would await, should the Vikings pass on franchise-tagging the 27-year-old arm.

Having already seen Darnold in O’Connell’s system, the Vikings could hope for more of the same due to the weaponry — perhaps beyond Aaron Jones, who is on a one-year deal — expected to remain in place in 2025. This would differ from another team sinking upper-middle-class — at the very least, given where Darnold’s trajectory now points — free agency money into Darnold, who would then be thrust into learning a new system and meshing with perhaps a less talented set of weapons.

A scenario in which Minnesota keeps Darnold — perhaps on the tag — but slots McCarthy behind him as a developmental option could also loom. That was the plan for 2024, as McCarthy was not expected to take over as the Vikings’ starter immediately. It was widely expected the former national championship-winning QB would take the reins at some point in 2024, but the way Darnold has played, it now would have seemed likely if McCarthy would have sat the full season had he stayed healthy.

The Vikings still figure to have a sense of McCarthy’s worth as a trade chip soon, though a commitment to Darnold would change the team’s roster blueprint. A tag would cost upwards of $40MM. McCarthy is on a rookie deal through at least the 2026 season; a Darnold tag or extension would change the math for a team that has Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson on top-market deals.

As the Vikings prepare for one of the biggest regular-season games in NFL history, their long-term QB plan will be of great interest around the NFL.

Load More Posts