Browns To Add DE A.J. Epenesa, WR Tylan Wallace
A.J. Epenesa‘s time in Buffalo is over, but the veteran defensive end will not be traveling far for his next NFL gig. The Browns are bringing in the former second-round pick.
Cleveland is adding Epenesa on a one-year deal worth up to $5MM, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. With the Bills changing their defensive scheme, Epenesa will wrap his tenure at six seasons.
Buffalo is shifting to a 3-4 scheme under new DC Jim Leonhard, and Epenesa will stay in a 4-3 alignment and work as a complementary presence around the game’s top pass rusher. The Browns already have Alex Wright in place as Myles Garrett‘s top sidekick, but Epenesa is no slouch in the sack department. He recorded 19 sacks from 2022-24. The Bills signed Bradley Chubb last week and have Michael Hoecht coming back from injury.
The Bills had re-signed Epenesa on a two-year, $12MM deal in 2024. The Iowa alum played out that contract but did not have a good platform year this time around. The rotational rusher only recorded 2.5 sacks in 15 games. Epenesa did intercept two passes, however, matching his total from 2023.
Although Epenesa’s sack count was down, the Bills still used him on 47% of their defensive snaps. Working as the top rusher off the bench behind starters Gregory Rousseau and Joey Bosa, Epenesa settled back into a second-string role after 13 2024 starts. The longtime Rousseau sidekick played a career-high 612 defensive snaps in 2024, recording a safety and setting a new career-best mark with eight tackles for loss.
Wright, 25, does not have a six-sack season yet despite playing opposite Garrett. The Browns extended the ex-Jim Schwartz piece on a three-year, $33MM deal. At a price that will come in shy of $5MM, Epenesa (27) represents what looks like a good value bet for Cleveland.
The team is also signing wide receiver/return man Tylan Wallace, cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot reports. Wallace spent his entire five-year career in Baltimore, and he will follow ex-Ravens OC Todd Monken to Cleveland.
Wallace played out a one-year, $2.1MM Ravens pact. While Wallace only has 305 receiving yards in five seasons, he has made a bigger impact as a return man. The former fourth-round pick returned a punt for a touchdown in 2023. Monken presumably has a bigger role for Wallace in mind — for a Browns team with serious WR questions beyond Jerry Jeudy — after the five-year vet returned only 20 combined kicks and punts in Baltimore.
Steelers Acquire, Extend WR Michael Pittman Jr.
MARCH 18: The official numbers on the Pittman extension emerged Wednesday, and the Steelers will have the former 1,000-yard pass catcher on a considerable discount compared to where he was with the Colts. Pittman is tied to a two-year, $35MM Pittsburgh deal, according to OverTheCap. It comes with $24MM guaranteed at signing. No guarantees are in place beyond 2026.
Previously tied to a three-year, $72MM pact, Pittman will receive his guarantee in the form of a signing bonus and a guaranteed $1.3MM 2026 base salary. At $17.5MM per year, the 6-foot-4 receiver matches Jerry Jeudy and Wan’Dale Robinson per year; the trio are tied for 23rd among wideout AAV.
MARCH 9, 7:24pm: Pittsburgh is sending a sixth-round pick for Pittman and a seventh, per the Pat McAfee Show‘s Mark Kaboly. This amounts to a salary dump by a Colts team that needed money for the Pierce payday and Jones’ tag.
Our Colts Offseason Outlook broached the Pierce-for-Pittman swap on the team’s payroll, and the club found a taker. The Steelers have their Metcalf complementary piece. Pittman, the first Colt to be franchise-tagged since McAfee (2013), is heading into an age-29 season.
11:52am: The Colts retained wide receiver Alec Pierce with a mega-deal on Monday, but they will say goodbye to another key pass catcher. The team has agreed to trade Michael Pittman Jr. to the Steelers, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports. The deal will be a late-round pick swap, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
The Steelers are awarding Pittman a three-year, $59MM extension, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. The 28-year-old otherwise would have played out the last season of his contract in 2026.
Days after the Colts placed the $37.83MM transition tag on quarterback Daniel Jones, Pierce stayed in place on a four-year, $116MM agreement. That left the Colts in need of cap space. By saying goodbye to Pittman, they will save $24MM at the cost of $5MM in dead money.
A consistently strong contributor since the Colts grabbed him in Round 2 of the 2020 draft, Pittman has reached 80 catches in four of his six seasons. He has also exceeded 1,000 yards twice. While 2025 was a down year in terms of yards per catch (9.8), Pittman still hauled in 80 passes for 784 yards and a personal-best seven touchdowns. He played in all 17 games for the second time in his career. Other than a 13-game rookie year, Pittman has never missed more than one contest in a season.
Although the Steelers do not have an established starting quarterback in place, expectations are that Aaron Rodgers will eventually re-sign. Rodgers quarterbacked the Steelers to 10 wins and an AFC North title last season, but the team lacked weapons at receiver after D.K. Metcalf. While Metcalf finished with 850 yards in 15 games, no other Steeler hit 500. Second receiver Calvin Austin, now a free agent, totaled 31 catches for 372 yards in 14 games. Meanwhile, no one from the Roman Wilson/Adam Thielen/Marquez Valdes-Scantling group posed much of a threat.
Regardless of who is under center for Pittsburgh in 2026, he should benefit from Pittman’s presence. The 6-foot-4, 223-pounder will give the Steelers a second proven wideout to complement Metcalf.
Lions To Sign WR Greg Dortch
Greg Dortch will complete a quick reunion with Drew Petzing. The new Lions offensive coordinator will once again coach his former Cardinals slot charge.
Detroit hosted Dortch on a Wednesday visit, per NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo, and NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero note the meeting will lead to a quick signing. It’s a one-year deal.
Contributing as a receiver and both as a kick and punt returner, Dortch will vie for a roster spot with Petzing’s new team. The Cardinals tendered Dortch as an RFA last year ($3.26MM) but will let him walk now that Mike LaFleur‘s in charge.
Operating as a diminutive inside receiver under Kliff Kingsbury and then Petzing in Arizona, Dortch saw time for the Cardinals from 2021-25. Formerly a Jets UDFA, Dortch journeyed to the Rams, Panthers and Falcons before getting a shot in the desert. The Cardinals deployed two 5-foot-7 wideouts — in Dortch and Rondale Moore — from 2021-23, and both enjoyed moments as auxiliary playmakers around the likes of DeAndre Hopkins, Trey McBride and Michael Wilson.
Playing in two 2019 games but not seeing any action in 2020, Dortch carved out a Cardinals role in 2022 and logged snap shares from 35-45% on offense over the next four seasons. A veteran of PFR’s Minor NFL Transactions posts, Dortch is still just 27 (28 in May). His best season came under Kingsbury in 2022 (52 receptions, 467 yards), but the Cards kept him around as they transitioned to Petzing’s offense.
Dortch did combine for six touchdown receptions from 2024-25, but he averaged fewer than 10 yards per catch — down to a paltry 7.1 last season — as Arizona’s offense became increasingly unreliable. The Wake Forest alum missed five games last season, being placed on IR in early December. A steadier presence as a return man, Dortch was the Cardinals’ primary kick returner last season. He also served as a regular Arizona punt-return option from 2022-25, though the dual-threat specialist does not have a return TD in his career.
The Lions have starters Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams signed to extensions, and three years remain on Isaac TeSlaa‘s rookie contract. The team also brought back practice squad mainstay Tom Kennedy last week.
Vikings Sign Bills T Ryan Van Demark To Offer Sheet
MARCH 18: Minnesota’s offer sheet hit the transaction wire today, per ESPN.com’s Alaina Getzenberg. That gives the Bills until Monday to match. The Bills, who did match a 2022 Bears RFA offer sheet for guard Ryan Bates, will not receive any compensation if they fail to match the Vikings’ offer.
MARCH 17: The Vikings have signed Bills restricted free agent offensive tackle Ryan Van Demark to an offer sheet, according to Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Buffalo has five days to match, but the team will not receive compensation if it allows Van Demark to leave.
The Bills gave Van Demark, who went undrafted, an original-round tender worth $3.52MM. The Vikings offered Van Demark a one-year, fully guaranteed deal worth $4.2MM, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 reports.
After starting 43 games at UConn, Van Demark signed with the Colts in 2022. The 6-foot-6, 307-pounder was part of their final roster cuts that year, but he caught on with the Bills’ practice squad.
Although Van Demark did not appear in any games as a rookie, he played 43 and started six from 2023-25. He combined for 511 offensive snaps over the past two seasons. During his first career 17-game campaign in 2025, Van Demark logged 154 snaps at right tackle and 43 at left tackle.
With Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown entrenched as the Bills’ starting bookends, Van Demark will continue to fill a swing tackle role if they match the Vikings’ offer sheet. In the event the cap-strapped Bills deem it too pricey, Tylan Grable and Chase Lundt are among in-house options who could take over for Van Demark.
Like the Bills, the Vikings have a pair of established and expensive tackles in Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill. But injuries have been a problem for Darrisaw, who has never played in more than 15 games in any of his five seasons. The 26-year-old tore his ACL and MCL in 2024, limiting him to seven games then, and his recovery dragged into ’25.
Darrisaw played just 10 games last year, and with the Vikings managing his workload, they put him on season-ending IR in late December. O’Neill posted perfect attendance during his second Pro Bowl campaign in 2024, but it was sandwiched between two 14-game seasons. Adding Van Demark would give the Vikings some insurance behind Darrisaw and O’Neill in 2026.
Chargers To Re-Sign S Tony Jefferson
Tony Jefferson battled injuries for a while, spending the 2020 season out of football. He then spent the 2023 season retired, working as a Ravens scout. But the veteran safety is now preparing to play a third season since coming out of retirement.
The Chargers are re-signing Jefferson, NFL insider Jordan Schultz tweets. It is a one-year, $2MM deal. He rejoins a team that traded Alohi Gilman months ago; Gilman has since signed with the Chiefs.
Jefferson’s reemergence — under then-Bolts DC Jesse Minter, a former Ravens DBs coach (who is now Baltimore’s HC) — made the Chargers comfortable trading Gilman in a package that brought back Odafe Oweh last October. Jefferson made eight starts last season — his most since the 2018 slate — and helped the Bolts back to the playoffs. The Derwin James complementary piece is still in the NFL despite entering the league in 2013. The two sabbatical seasons have presumably helped keep the veteran fresh, but the former UDFA is going into an age-34 season.
While Minter landed the Ravens’ HC job, the Chargers replaced him with their former safeties coach. Chris O’Leary coached the Bolts’ safeties in 2024, and Schultz adds he and Jefferson remain close. Only two months older than Jefferson, O’Leary is back with the Chargers after spending the 2025 season as Western Michigan’s DC.
Suiting up for 13 games last season also marked Jefferson’s most since that 2018 Ravens campaign under Minter. O’Leary was finishing up his college playing career at Indiana State when Jefferson entered the NFL, and the new coordinator will have considerable experience to lean on at safety this coming season. James is back for his ninth Bolts year, with Elijah Molden returning for a sixth NFL season. With James patrolling the slot or roving near the line of scrimmage more often than not, Jefferson logged 351 snaps at free safety last season.
Jefferson shined under Minter, intercepting a career-high four passes. That doubled his career total, with the 2025 thefts his first in seven years. The former Cardinals UDFA played for the veteran minimum in 2025, doing so as he yoyoed between the Bolts’ practice squad and active roster between the 2024 and ’25 campaigns. This $2MM deal does not ensure Jefferson will be back, but his close relationship with O’Leary and 2025 success makes it safe to pencil in the Oklahoma alum for another year in the league.
Colts Sign WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, LB Akeem Davis-Gaither
Continuing a hyphen-heavy transaction week, the Colts are adding some veteran depth on both sides of the ball. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Akeem Davis-Gaither are signing with the team, the Colts announced.
Lou Anarumo‘s reunions with hyphenated ex-Bengals already included a Tuesday Cam Taylor-Britt agreement. Davis-Gaither, who played for Cincinnati from 2020-24 under Indianapolis’ current DC, will join the Colts after a season with the Cardinals.
Westbrook-Ikhine comes over after a season in Miami, but he is certainly better known to Colts fans as a longtime Titans auxiliary wideout. The former Ryan Tannehill target spent five years in Tennessee before moving to Miami last year. Westbrook-Ikhine posted two 400-plus-yard seasons, including a 476-yard, four-TD campaign for a Titans team that claimed the AFC’s No. 1 seed in 2021.
Three years later, Westbrook-Ikhine managed nine touchdown grabs on just 32 receptions — including a 98-yard score. Two of those nine TDs came against the Colts. The 6-foot-2 pass catcher, 29 on Saturday, signed a two-year, $5.99MM Dolphins deal in 2025 but caught only 11 passes as a Jaylen Waddle complementary option. Miami’s new regime, which is prepared to smash a single-season dead money record, released Westbrook-Ikhine recently (the seventh-year vet only counts $1.6MM toward Miami’s astonishing dead cap total — above $170MM when Tua Tagovailoa‘s release is factored in).
The Colts came into last season with a receiver surplus but dealt into it over the past five months, sending Adonai Mitchell to the Jets in the Sauce Gardner trade and Michael Pittman Jr. to the Steelers in a salary-dump move as payments for Alec Pierce and Daniel Jones loomed. Those moves could clear a path for Westbrook-Ikhine to be a low-cost WR3 alongside Pierce and Josh Downs.
Davis-Gaither, 28, made a career-high 13 starts for the Cardinals but received a pink slip earlier this month. He had previously been a role player under Anarumo, serving as a Logan Wilson–Germaine Pratt wingman at linebacker. This included three seasons with a snap rate of 30% or higher. Pratt and Wilson were the lead options, though, during Anarumo’s tenure. The Colts rostered Pratt last season, picking him up after a Raiders release, but have not brought him back just yet.
Intercepting a Tyler Huntley pass in the 2022 wild-card round, Davis-Gaither took on a bigger role with the Cardinals in 2025 but struggled. Pro Football Focus graded him in the bottom quartile among off-ball linebackers last season, though he did smash a career high with 117 tackles while adding an interception and five passes defensed.
The Colts have steadily dismantled their linebacking corps, moving on from Shaquille Leonard, E.J. Speed and Zaire Franklin over the past two-plus years. They sent Franklin to Green Bay for defensive tackle Colby Wooden. Jaylon Carlies currently serves as the top Indianapolis holdover LB, giving Davis-Gaither a path to a prominent role as it currently stands.
Bears To Bring Back LB Jack Sanborn
After a season with the Cowboys, Jack Sanborn will return to Chicago. The Bears are bringing back the veteran linebacker, according to a team announcement.
A 19-game Bears starter from 2022-24, Sanborn migrated to Dallas after being nontendered as an RFA last year. Sanborn went down with a groin injury midway through the season, and the Cowboys did not activate him from IR. He will return to Chicago after playing out a one-year, $1.5MM Dallas deal.
Even with the Bears spending big at linebacker in 2023 — via the Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards accords — they used Sanborn as a 10-game starter. He registered a career-high 67 tackles (seven for loss) and intercepted a pass. Chicago capped Sanborn’s defensive usage at 39%, with Edmunds and Edwards in place as full-timers on the team’s defensive second level. A similar role may be in store in 2026.
Pro Football Focus has long viewed Sanborn as a mid-pack linebacker, but he did not have enough snaps to qualify as a regular in 2025. Sanborn, 25, missed 11 games last season; though, the Wisconsin alum did log a career-best 55% snap rate in his Cowboys season.
Releasing Edmunds — who landed on his feet with a $23MM Giants guarantee — the Bears still roster Edwards, and they added Devin Bush after the former first-rounder impressed under Jim Schwartz in Cleveland. The team re-signed D’Marco Jackson and rosters two of the NFL’s three Sewell brothers. Noah Sewell started nine games last season; Nephi has one career start in four NFL campaigns.
Broncos Acquire WR Jaylen Waddle From Dolphins
MARCH 18: Following the Maxx Crosby drama, fans of both teams were anxious for Waddle to complete his physical to formally complete the trade. The deal was formally announced on Wednesday by both teams, indicating that Waddle passed his physical in Denver and is now officially a member of the Broncos.
MARCH 17: The Broncos’ first outside addition of the new league year is certainly a notable one. Jaylen Waddle is heading to Denver. 
The Dolphins have worked out a trade to send Waddle to the Broncos, as first reported by Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Multiple picks in the 2026 draft will be exchanged as part of the deal, as detailed by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Meanwhile, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald notes Denver will take on the remainder of Waddle’s contract in full, including his 2026 base salary ($1.22MM).
Here is the full breakdown of the trade terms:
Broncos acquire:
- Waddle
- Miami’s fourth-round pick (No. 111)
Dolphins acquire:
- Denver’s first-round pick (No. 30)
- Broncos’ own third- and fourth-rounders (Nos. 94 and 130)
Until today, the Broncos had focused on retaining as many of their own players as possible. The AFC’s top seed in 2025 still had a vacancy with respect to pass-catching options, however. Denver was linked yesterday to interest in the tight end market, with Evan Engram disappointing during his debut Broncos campaign. Regardless of what happens on that front, a high-profile receiving option is set to be in place for next season with GM George Paton taking a major swing early in the new league year. A physical is scheduled for tomorrow, per Schefter’s colleague Jeff Darlington.
The Dolphins dismissed general manager Chris Grier shortly before the 2025 trade deadline. That led to an increased expectation with respect to the team’s willingness to move on from players. Waddle, 27, generated considerable interest, and the Broncos were one of many teams which made calls. In the end, no suitors were willing to meet the Dolphins’ asking price of a first-rounder and more.
With new GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley arriving, the Dolphins have begun a full-blown rebuild. Several veterans have been released recently in cost-shedding moves and to clear roster spots for younger replacements. That includes not only quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and edge rusher Bradley Chubb – both of whom quickly found new homes in free agency – but also receiver Tyreek Hill. It came as no surprise when Hill was cut, a move which seemed to put Waddle in position to operate as the Dolphins’ top wideout in 2026 and beyond.
Indeed, a report from last month named the former first-rounder along with lead running back De’Von Achane as core pieces the new regime was not looking to part with. Things have certainly changed in short order with a suitor willing to pay a premium for Waddle. Three years remain on his contract, a lucrative extension signed in 2024. Given the guarantees present in the pact, this swap will carry even more unwanted financial implications for Miami during an offseason full of major cap-related moves.
Waddle is owed an option bonus worth $6.06MM on Friday as part of his $17.24MM in overall compensation. That helps explain the timing of this trade, one which will see the Alabama product paired with Courtland Sutton, Marvin Mims and Troy Franklin. Sutton’s pact runs through 2029, while Mims and Franklin – just like quarterback Bo Nix – are attached to their rookie contracts. Coming off the back of a second straight playoff appearance, Denver is aggressively pursuing an upgrade in the passing game.
Miami, meanwhile, will add yet another premium pick for 2026. Once the Waddle move is official, the Dolphins will own a pair of Day 1 selections and a total of seven picks across the first three rounds. Several roster holes will need to be filled next month, and receiver will no doubt be high on the priority list. With Hill and now Waddle out of the picture, Miami’s WR depth chart is currently topped by the likes of Malik Washington and recent additions Tutu Atwell and Jalen Tolbert.
Putting together a cost-effective supporting cast around new quarterback Malik Willis will increasingly be the goal for Miami this offseason. This trade highlights to an even larger extent the long-term nature of the team’s rebuild. As the Broncos look to maximize their window with Nix on an affordable contract, bringing in a three-time 1,000-yard producer will generate increased expectations on offense.
Lions To Sign LB Damone Clark
Damone Clark is heading north. The former Cowboys, and Texans linebacker has signed with the Lions, per a team announcement.
Clark, 25, was a fifth-round pick out of LSU in 2022. He missed the first half of his rookie year due to spinal fusion surgery, but drew starts for five of his 10 appearances with a 59% snap share. He started every game for the Cowboys in 2023, but saw a significant role reduction in 2024 and was waived midway through last season.
The Texans claimed Clark off waivers and installed him as a core special teams contributor for the last six games of the season. He only played 23 snaps on defense, but saw the field for 131 special teams plays with a 78.7 grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
In Detroit, Clark will add dept to a linebacker room currently led by Jack Campbell, Derrick Barnes, and Malcolm Rodriguez. Veteran Trevor Nowaske re-signed with the Lions last week; he and Clark will likely serve as backups on defense with core roles on special teams in 2026.
Clark knows his new defensive coordinator, Kelvin Sheppard, from their shared time at LSU. Sheppard, also an alum, served as the Tigers’ director of player development in 2020, Clark’s junior year at Baton Rouge.
Panthers To Sign RB AJ Dillon
AJ Dillon‘s journey around the NFC will continue with a trip south. The former Packers mainstay is heading to Carolina, NFL insider Jordan Schultz tweets.
The Panthers are adding Dillon on a one-year deal, giving the former second-round pick a chance to play a seventh NFL season. Dillon spent last year as an Eagles Saquon Barkley backup option but has not seen extensive work since the 2023 season — his last as the Packers’ Aaron Jones complementary piece.
Although Dillon re-signed at a low rate to stay with the Packers in 2024, an IR placement without a return designation that August sidelined him for the season. Dillon, 28 in May, totaled only 12 carries for 60 yards last season. On one hand, the bruising back should be fresh after 12 carries in two years; on the other, he has been relatively off the radar for a while.
Carolina lost Rico Dowdle in free agency; the 2025 1,000-yard rusher joined the Steelers on a two-year, $12.25MM deal. The team demoted Chuba Hubbard to give Dowdle more work last season, but the homegrown talent is still signed through 2028 on his $8.3MM-per-year deal. The Panthers also have 2024 second-round pick Jonathon Brooks, but he has suffered two ACL tears since 2023 and missed all of last season. Trevor Etienne, a 2025 fourth-rounder, should factor in more prominently post-Dowdle.
Best remembered as a key between-the-tackles/short-yardage presence (and tormentor of Jones fantasy GMs), Dillon totaled 2,246 rushing yards from 2021-23. He averaged 4.3 and 4.1 yards per carry in 2021 and ’22, respectively, serving as a key presence for the Packers’ first post-Davante Adams offense in the latter season. In 2023, however, Dillon slogged to just a 3.4-yard average.
The Boston College product played for just $1.34MM in Philadelphia last year and collected $2.74MM on Green Bay’s IR two years ago. This deal likely will not ensure Dillon makes the Panthers’ 53-man roster, but the team does have some veteran insurance behind Hubbard. Dillon’s roster spot could be contingent on where Brooks’ recovery ends up, but at the very least, the power back is an experienced player on a team lacking much of that in its backfield beyond Hubbard.