HEADLINES

Month: August 2025

Vikings Trade QB Sam Howell To Eagles; Minnesota Signs Carson Wentz

August 24th, 2025 at 11:27pm CST by Rory Parks

The Vikings are trading quarterback Sam Howell and a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Eagles, per Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. In exchange, Minnesota will receive a fifth- and seventh-round choice in 2026, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter was the first to report that the team is also signing veteran passer Carson Wentz to replace Howell and to serve as the backup for J.J. McCarthy.

Wentz, 32, visited the Vikings yesterday, and the summit clearly went well. McCarthy, of course, missed his entire rookie season in 2024 due to injury, though the club’s faith in his ability to operate as the starting QB in 2025 never wavered. Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones were therefore allowed to leave in free agency, and Minnesota acquired Howell during April’s draft with the expectation that he would slot in behind McCarthy on the depth chart.

Howell played well in the club’s first preseason contest this summer, but he struggled in his second outing, completing one of five passes for 13 yards and an interception. He sat out the preseason finale on Friday as Brett Rypien and 2025 UDFA Max Brosmer shared the snaps under center.

In addition to adding a more experienced and accomplished voice in Wentz — who is familiar with HC Kevin O’Connell‘s offensive system — today’s transaction adds a bit more draft capital to the Vikings’ stockpile (just as the recent Harrison Phillips swap did). As multiple pundits, including ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, were quick to point out in the immediate aftermath of the Howell report, Minnesota is in the market for a wide receiver, and the Phillips and Howell trades could help facilitate a WR addition. Longtime Viking and current Panther Adam Thielen remains a target, but Fowler notes the club has multiple lines of inquiry open. Plus, according to Alec Lewis of The Athletic, Minnesota has been pleased with Brosmer and appears perfectly content to have him as the No. 3 QB.

Howell, meanwhile, continues a nomadic journey that is uncommon for such a young player. The Commanders’ 2022 draftee, who will turn 25 next month, started all 17 games for Washington in 2023, and he finished with a 4-13 record. The club was unafraid to let him air it out, as he led the NFL with 612 pass attempts, which led to a league-worst 21 interceptions. He was traded to Seattle in April 2024, but he saw limited action as the backup to Geno Smith. Including today’s deal, the UNC product has been traded three times in the span of 18 months.

Still, the Eagles needed some cover for their own QB room, as Jalen Hurts‘ presumptive backup, Tanner McKee, is dealing with a finger injury that has jeopardized his Week 1 availability. Albert Breer of SI.com notes Philadelphia remains high on McKee, and it does not sound as if his ailment is a long-term one. Nonetheless, Howell will offer an upgrade over sixth-round rookie Kyle McCord, both as the QB2 in the event McKee is not ready to go at the start of the season and as the QB3 over the course of the campaign (or, the Eagles could theoretically try to trade McKee; per Breer, there has been outside interest in the 25-year-old signal-caller, which echoes his recent report on the matter).

Assuming a McKee trade does not come to fruition, Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer believes McCord will be waived, though the Eagles could try to stash him on the practice squad if he clears waivers. Offseason trade acquisition Dorian Thompson-Robinson is also on the Eagles’ roster for the time being, but today’s news obviously does not bode well for his future in Philly.

McLane adds that the team has waived/injured DB Lewis Cine, who, according Zach Berman of The Athletic, was on crutches following Friday’s preseason game, when he recorded a diving interception.

Patriots Actively Shopping S Kyle Dugger

August 24th, 2025 at 11:13pm CST by Ely Allen

Patriots safety Kyle Dugger lived up to his second-round draft status very early in his New England career. As a result, the team signed him to a four-year, $58MM extension in 2024. Despite that commitment, the Patriots are actively shopping the safety out for a trade, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. We knew the team was open to trading him, but actively shopping him is an escalation.

Coming out of Division II Lenoir-Rhyne, it said a lot that the Patriots were willing to make Dugger the second safety selected in the 2020 NFL Draft as the fifth pick of the second round. With Duron Harmon getting traded in the offseason and Patrick Chung opting out of the season due to COVID-19, Dugger was named the primary backup to starting safeties Adrian Phillips and Devin McCourty as a rookie.

By Year 2, Dugger was a full-time starter, breaking onto the scene with four interceptions and 100 return yards. He followed that up with a career year in which he nabbed three interceptions, returning two for touchdowns in 2022. That year, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded him as the 11th-best safety in the NFL.

PFF fell out of love with him after that season, though. In 2023, he had another productive season, intercepting two more passes and racking up 109 tackles, including a team-leading 71 solo tackles. That year, PFF graded him as the 68th-best safety in the NFL out of 95 players graded at the position. 2024 saw a year of decline for Dugger. Missing four games and seeing decreased production, Dugger graded as PFF’s 95th-best safety out of 98 players graded last year.

Per Rapoport, the new staff views Dugger much differently than the staff that extended him last April. As a result, Dugger has been seen playing deep into preseason games — when most starters and veterans have been safely removed from play — and had been taking second-team reps in training camp. The work with the second-team defense was due in part to his recovery from a tightrope surgery done to repair a high ankle sprain, but Dugger is reportedly fully healthy yet still, seemingly, on his way out.

When news broke that the Patriots were gauging trade interest for Dugger and outside linebacker Anfernee Jennings, the replies seemed to indicate that Jennings was drawing interest while Dugger’s new contract served as an obstacle for moving him, per Jeff Howe of The Athletic. It’s no wonder, considering how much impact the contract has on his ability to be cut.

If the Patriots were able to trade Dugger, they would be left with only $4.5MM in dead money and open up $10.76MM in cap space. If they can’t find a trade partner, though, it will be interesting to see if they cut him instead. Cutting Dugger would result in $14.25MM of dead money while only opening up $1.01MM of cap space. It’s hard to picture the team releasing the veteran in a move that would financially hamstring them that much.

So, it appears, they’ll continue to shop him out. They may have to find ways to make the trade more enticing by including draft picks or paying some bonuses to Dugger before the trade so that the receiving team is only responsible for base salary. Regardless, it feels as if Dugger may not have a place in New England as the staff actively works to shop him out.

Pete Carroll: Raiders Exploring QB Addition

August 24th, 2025 at 10:52pm CST by Adam La Rose

As a result of Aidan O’Connell‘s wrist fracture, the Raiders will be shorthanded at the quarterback position to begin the season. Acquiring depth represents a priority over the coming days.

[RELATED: Recapping Raiders’ Offseason]

“All possibilities are available right now,” head coach Pete Carroll said on Sunday when asked about the team’s QB plans (via ESPN’s Ryan McFadden). ” I mean, wherever they come from, and we’re looking everywhere to see [if] we find the best guy that fits us.”

With teams beginning the process of reaching 53 on their respective rosters, plenty of players have become available recently. That includes a few quarterbacks. Earlier today, the Vikings released Brett Rypien as part of their shake-ups at the position. Since then, the Browns have made the expected move of cutting Tyler Huntley. Both veterans will immediately reach free agency (without needing to clear waivers first).

The Raiders have Geno Smith atop the depth chart for 2025, and undrafted rookie Cam Miller is in the fold as a depth option. Fellow UDFA Tommy Mellott played quarterback in college, but as expected he has worked as a receiver upon entering the NFL. For at least as long as O’Connell is unavailable, the team could benefit from having a veteran presence behind Smith.

Indeed, Carroll noted experience is a factor which will play an important role in the team’s search process. For that reason, Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal names Ryan Tannehill as a potential target. Tannehill did not play last year, but with 151 starts to his name the 37-year-old would certainly qualify as a veteran QB2 option.

With nearly $35MM in cap space, the Raiders will not have a problem affording any short-term addition which winds up being made in time for Week 1. Free agency (amongst the signal-callers already cut) and/or trades represent avenues for a new passer to be brought in. The waiver wire will also be busy over the coming days, and Vegas could elect to take that route instead.

Andrew Berry Confirms Browns Will Keep Four QBs

August 24th, 2025 at 10:51pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Browns general manager Andrew Berry confirmed that all four of the team’s quarterbacks – veterans Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett and rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders – would make the 53-man roster, per ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi.

Berry said earlier this summer that the team would consider keeping four quarterbacks and now seems poised to follow through. On Saturday, he called it “not much of a decision.”

“We have a room that we like all the guys in there,” said Berry. “We don’t really see that as a problem. We more see it as an opportunity.”

Cleveland’s quarterback situation has been the subject of intense scrutiny, perhaps more than any other in the league. The two veterans were long seen as the likeliest starters, with Flacco winning the job as Pickett dealt with a hamstring injury throughout training camp. Pickett is still expected to be ready to backup Flacco in Week 1, per Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot. Gabriel and Sanders will provide depth, likely in that order, though at least one will be inactive on gamedays.

The focus on The Browns’ 2025 quarterback room comes in spite of signals that the team is planning to prioritize the position in next year’s draft. One such indicator was the acquisition of an extra 2026 first-round pick via the Travis Hunter trade with the Jaguars. Neither Flacco nor Pickett are long-term propositions under center, and the two rookies may not get a chance to establish themselves as future starters this year.

Deshaun Watson is unlikely to regain a starting role in Cleveland, but he’ll still cover more than a quarter of the team’s cap in 2026, per OverTheCap. That could keep the Browns from chasing a veteran in free agency and force them to bet on one of their second-year passers or draft one of the top college quarterback prospects next spring.

Patriots Expected To Add 3rd QB

August 24th, 2025 at 10:50pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Patriots culled their quarterback room down to two players – starter Drake Maye and backup Joshua Dobbs – on Friday by waiving undrafted rookie Ben Wooldridge.

Obviously, New England doesn’t want to enter the season with just two QBs. Head coach Mike Vrabel indicated (via ESPN’s Mike Reiss) that the Patriots would add a third in the coming days, whether it be to the 53-man roster or the practice squad.

Releasing Wooldridge a few days before final cuts suggests that he won’t be the team’s third-string quarterback He dazzled in the Patriots’ first preseason game, completing nine of his 12 passes for 132 yards (11.0 yards per attempt) and a 138.2 passer rating, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). However, Wooldridge struggled across the next two games, completing 17 of 33 for just 133 yards (4.0 yards per attempt) along with one touchdown and one interception for a 58.2 passer rating. The Patriots could bring him back on the practice squad for more development, but he’s unlikely to be ready for a backup role right away if one of the team’s top two get hurt.

Instead, New England will likely scour the quarterback market in the coming days, seeing which veterans get released and which young passers are available on the waiver wire.

One in the latter group is Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito, who is expected to be released with Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston, and Jaxson Dart ahead of him in New York. He had an excellent game against the Patriots on Thursday in what could’ve been an audition for his new team, per Reiss. He will be subject to waivers, so New England may have to commit a 53-man roster spot to secure his services rather than try to sign him to the practice squad.

Shanahan: 49ers Acquired Brian Robinson To Be Christian McCaffrey’s Top Backup

August 24th, 2025 at 9:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

Although the 49ers traded Jordan Mason in March and had changed their backfield makeup behind Christian McCaffrey, the Brian Robinson trade became an about-face of sorts. The All-Pro has a new backup.

Isaac Guerendo is a third-round pick who has three years left on his rookie contract, but the 2024 draftee has seen his role change shortly before the season. Robinson will be the 49ers’ primary backup, Kyle Shanahan said (via the San Jose Mercury News’ Cam Inman). Shanahan indicated this 49ers regime had been fans of Robinson coming out of Alabama.

The 49ers have been in need of backfield depth for years. The team has regularly lost starters — from Jerick McKinnon to Tevin Coleman to Raheem Mostert to McCaffrey — during Shanahan’s tenure. While McCaffrey stayed healthy after being acquired in 2022 and throughout his Offensive Player of the Year 2023 season, he missed most of 2024. That made the Mason trade somewhat surprising, but the 49ers used a third-round pick on Guerendo — who clocked a sub-4.4-second 40-yard dash time at the 2024 Combine.

Guerendo averaged 5.0 yards per carry in 16 games last season but had been battling a shoulder injury for a few weeks in training camp. Robinson, who recovered from gunshot wounds sustained just before his rookie season, had operated as the Commanders’ top running back for most of his rookie contract. But he was a Ron Rivera–Martin Mayhew draftee whom the current regime considered trading last year. The Adam Peters-run team then began shopping him in earnest this month, and after the 49ers and Commanders connected on the Deebo Samuel trade March 1, Robinson will take up Bay Area residency in a deal that sent a 2026 sixth-round pick to Washington.

Adding an important note on the pick, CardsWire’s Howard Balzer specifies it is a conditional selection. The conditions are not known, but it is not guaranteed the Commanders will fetch a sixth for their previous RB1. The 49ers have their own sixth-rounder that year in addition to Minnesota’s thanks to the Mason trade. Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area notes the Commanders will receive the lower of those two selections provided the conditions are met.

Guerendo will also presumably retain a role should McCaffrey go down, but he has been bumped down to the third-string level as a result of the trade. The speed back complementing Robinson’s between-the-tackles work would seemingly be San Francisco’s plan in the even CMC is hurt again, but Robinson will also see a significant role reduction — after 570 carries from 2022-24 — as a result of this trade.

Eagles Unlikely To Retain LB Nakobe Dean Beyond 2025?

August 24th, 2025 at 9:34pm CST by Adam La Rose

2025 marks the final year of Nakobe Dean‘s rookie contract. No extension is viewed as likely for the Eagles linebacker, meaning a trip to free agency next spring is currently on track to take place.

Dean’s production in college was insufficient to prevent a drop down the order during the 2022 draft. Injury concerns resulted in a fall to the third round, although he did not miss a regular or postseason game as a rookie. The following campaign saw Dean limited to only five contests, however, and a torn patellar tendon suffered in this year’s wild-card game figures to leave him sidelined at the outset of the 2025 season. Given how late he went down last season, he could spend a significant portion of the year on the physically unable to perform list.

In no small part due to his injury history, PhillyVoice’s Geoff Mosher writes this will “probably” be Dean’s final year with the Eagles. They signed Zack Baun to a three-year, $51MM extension in March and drafted Jihaad Campbell in the first round of April’s draft, signaling that Dean is not a part of their future linebacker plans. Recent Day 3 picks Jeremiah Trotter (2024) and Smael Mondon (2025) have impressed as well, per Mosher, potentially giving Philadelphia cheap, young backups for the next few years.

If Dean were healthy, the Eagles’ linebacker depth might have made him a trade candidate, according to Mosher, but his inability to pass a physical would likely be an insurmountable obstacle to such a deal. Instead, he will start the year on the sidelines, and by the time Dean gets back on the field – if at all – there may not be a role for him in Vic Fangio‘s defense.

Beyond contributing in 2025, a full recovery will obviously be paramount in determining Dean’s free agency value next offseason. Teams will be unlikely to commit significant long-term money, so, like many players coming off a major injury, he may have to take a shorter ‘prove it’ deal and rebuild his stock for the 2027 offseason.

Nikhil Mehta contributed to this article.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/24/25

August 24th, 2025 at 8:14pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor transactions that may have slipped through the cracks with a day full of mass cuts:

Buffalo Bills

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

New England Patriots

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Thompson-Robinson continues to struggle to find his place in the NFL. A fifth-round pick for the Browns out of UCLA, Thompson-Robinson was asked to make a number of spot starts in Cleveland. In five starts, he went 1-4, averaging about 150 passing yards per game. Over those two seasons, he scored only one touchdown while throwing 10 interceptions. He was sent to Philadelphia along with a 2025 fifth-round pick in exchange for Kenny Pickett, but the Eagles seemingly do not have a place for him.

Moore was hospitalized with a leg injury suffered in the Giants’ final preseason game but has been discharged following a successful surgery. Barring an injury settlement, he’ll spend the 2025 season on New York’s injured reserve.

Webb received a large signing bonus to sign with the Broncos as an undrafted free agent. While other teams will get their chance to claim him, the Broncos will hope to be able to bring him back to their practice squad.

Eagles Trade OT Darian Kinnard To Packers

August 24th, 2025 at 7:31pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Eagles are trading offensive tackle Darian Kinnard to the Packers for a 2027 sixth-round pick, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The swap is now official, per a team announcement.

The move comes shortly after Philadelphia reunited with offensive tackle Fred Johnson in a trade with the Jaguars. It is also the team’s third trade of the day after they acquired quarterback Sam Howell from the Vikings. Armed with 10 picks in next year’s draft – plus three projected compensatory selections – Eagles general manager Howie Roseman has been wheeling and dealing to fill immediate needs and recoup draft capital for surplus talent. More moves are expected, per 94WIP’s Eliot Shor-Parks.

With Johnson back in the fold as the Eagles’ swing tackle, Roseman managed to get a draft pick for a player that he originally signed to a reserve/futures contract during the 2024 offseason. Kinnard, a 2022 fifth-round pick, spent the two previous seasons with the Chiefs, making him a three-time Super Bowl champion at just 25 years old. He has only appeared in three regular season games in his career, including a Week 18 start last year. His time training under legendary Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland may have helped him attract the Packers’ attention as they sought additional help in the trenches.

“The depth right now for us, it’s not where we want it to be,” said Luke Butkus, Green Bay’s offensive line coach, during training camp (via ESPN’s Rob Demovsky). The Packers have four of their starters set with Rasheed Walker and Jordan Morgan competing for the left tackle job, but they wanted to add more talent on the right side. Kinnard fits the bill with experience at both right guard and right tackle, though the vast majority of his snaps have come in the preseason.

The Packers currently have four-year veteran Trey Hill as their backup right guard and rookie Anthony Belton as their backup right tackle. Hill has mostly played center in his career, though he has worked at guard in the preseason. Belton almost exclusively lined up at left tackle at North Carolina State before the Packers selected him in the third round of April’s draft. Kinnard could take over either’s job, though replacing Belton as the second-team right tackle seems more likely.

The Eagles still have plenty of talent at offensive tackle after Kinnard’s departure. Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson are arguably the best starting duo in the NFL with Fred Johnson, 10-year veteran Kendall Lamm and sixth-round pick Cameron Williams, among others, providing depth.

NFLPA Applied ‘Lessons Learned’ From Lloyd Howell Fallout To Hiring Of David White

August 24th, 2025 at 7:26pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

New NFLPA executive director David White is trying to avoid some of the pitfalls that plagued his predecessor, Lloyd Howell, who resigned earlier this year amid a series of controversies.

After Howell faced allegations of a conflict of interest for his work for a consulting firm with an interest in acquiring an NFL team, White is stepping away from his own firm, 3CG Ventures. A notice on 3CG Venture’s website says that they have “temporarily paused all client activity.” White is also resigning from the boards of other companies, according to Mark Maske of The Washington Post.

The union’s hiring process also “incorporated lessons learned” from previous selection, especially the decision to install Howell as executive director in 2023, according to a union spokesperson. White was a finalist for the position in 2023 and was the preferred choice of the NFLPA executive committee. This time, players led interviews and vetting of candidates with more time to consider their decsiion.

“The process to determine the interim executive director did not mirror past executive director elections,” the spokesperson said (via Maske).

The union also reviewed White’s tenure as former national executive director for the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). Among the relevant issues was an accusation of misusing expense accounts, but it was later retracted. Howell faced similar accusations prior to his resignation.

One of the NFLPA’s early moves under White was to put associate general counsel Heather McPhee on administrative leave after multiple complaints to human resources, per ESPN’s Don Natta Jr. and Jeff Passan. The ongoing federal probe into the union’s finances began after McPhee raised the issue internally. She has been at the NFLPA since 2009 and was a vocal critic of Howell.

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