TE Dalton Schultz Wants To Remain With Texans
Dalton Schultz joined a new team for the first time in his career last offseason, signing with the Texans after a five-year run with the Cowboys. If he has his way, he will remain in Houston for at least the 2024 campaign. 
From 2020-22 in particular, Schultz established himself as one of Dak Prescott‘s top targets. He showed considerable potential with a career year in 2021, posting 808 yards and eight touchdowns on 78 receptions. Despite having relatively high stock heading into free agency last spring, though, he inked only a one-year deal with the Texans worth $6.25MM in guaranteed money.
In his debut Houston campaign, the 27-year-old delivered another strong campaign. Schultz finished with a 59-635-5 statline in 15 regular season games, adding a touchdown grab in the team’s surprise run to the divisional round of the playoffs. He could be in line for a contract keeping him in Houston for the time being, something he would welcome.
“I’d love to be in Houston,” Schultz said during a recent appearance on SportsRadio610. “There’s no doubt about that. I loved my time. Special organization, special quarterback. Love the scheme, love the coaches, I’ve loved everything about Houston. I’m confident that we can find some common ground.”
After quarterback C.J. Stroud won Offensive Rookie of the Year with a commendable performance and first-year head coach DeMeco Ryans guided the team to a division title and wild-card win, the Texans certainly profile as an attractive free agent destination. Schultz would be counted on as a key option in the passing game alongside wideouts Nico Collins and Tank Dell if he were to be retained.
The Cowboys were unsuccessful in working out a long-term agreement with Schultz, however. That resulted in the former fourth-rounder playing on the franchise tag in 2022. He could aim for a raise from his previous pact, though a deal placing him amongst the 12 tight ends earning $10MM or more per season would likely come as a surprise. Schultz’s deal is set to void on February 19, which would trigger a $3.38MM cap charge for the 2024 season. The team would therefore be well-served to hammer out a new deal before that time if Schultz’s desire for an extended stay in Houston is reciprocated.
Saints GM Mickey Loomis Addresses Cap Strategy; Team Restructures Marshon Lattimore, Jameis Winston Contracts
For years, the Saints have been at the forefront of the league with respect to maneuvering themselves into cap compliance. The 2024 offseason figures to be no different in that respect, with restructures expected to be a frequently-used tool.
New Orleans has a veteran-laden roster and has elected on several occasions to avoid a hard financial reset by instead creating immediate cap space at the expense of future years. That has left the team with a number of difficult decisions, but general manager Mickey Loomis has managed to keep the core intact while also being active in spots during free agency. When asked about this offseason, he confirmed a signficant shift in operations will not be coming. 
“I don’t know that change is the right word,” Loomis said, via NOLA.com’s Matthew Paras. “We just have to be conscious of making up some ground in the next few years, and there are different ways to do that. I’ve said this [to the media] before, sometimes you have to look beyond the numbers and look at how many guys are under contract, what’s the roster, what are your core players… There’s just a lot of different variables.”
Currently projected to be well over the cap for the new league year, the Saints have begun the process of restructuring some of their most lucrative contracts. That includes cornerback Marshon Lattimore, who ESPN’s Field Yates notes had much of his 2024 base salary converted into an option bonus. The move created just over $11MM in cap space for this year. Lattimore’s re-worked pact also has a de-escalator for offseason workout participation, as detailed by Yates’ colleague Katherine Terrell and Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.football.
As Underhill further notes, Lattimore’s option bonus does not take effect until one week before the start of the 2024 campaign (subscription required). That could create a window of opportunity for a trade, something which would come as a surprise given the four-time Pro Bowler’s importance to New Orleans’ defense. Lattimore is under contract through 2026; like many Saints, though, his pact includes multiple void years.
The same is true of quarterback Jameis Winston. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports Winston agreed to add void years to his pact which will take effect shortly after the new league year begins in March. He is still on track to reach free agency, but the move will allow for his cap hit to be spread over multiple seasons. As Terrell notes, Winston was due to carry a cap charge of $10.6MM in the event he did not re-sign. The 30-year-old has been with New Orleans since 2020, and he could be retained this spring in a backup capacity.
Designating him a post-June 1 release would also be a viable option, however. The new Winston pact includes massive bonuses in the 2025 and ’28 void years, Terrell details, but a post-June 1 cut would create a modest dead cap charge of $3.87MM in each of the next two years.
Like Lattimore and Winston, several other Saints players will soon have significant adjustments made to their contracts as New Orleans strives to get under the 2024 cap ceiling. All teams must do so before March 13, but as usual the Saints will have one of the steepest challenges to achieve compliance.
Cowboys Remain In Contact With Rex Ryan Over DC Position
A report from last week tapped Mike Zimmer as the next defensive coordinator of the Cowboys. An agreement has not yet been finalized, however, and at least one other candidate is still in the running for the position. 
[RELATED: Offensive/Defensive Coordinator Search Tracker]
Dallas has remained in contact with Rex Ryan, ESPN’s Adam Schefter explained on a Monday Pat McAfee Show appearance (video link). Schefter himself stated during ESPN’s Super Bowl countdown show on Sunday that the Zimmer hire had been made, but Ryan echoed reports which have noted that a contract is not yet in place. Now, the latter can still be considered a finalist for the role.
Ryan interviewed with Dallas as part of the team’s search for a Dan Quinn replacement. That marked the second straight offseason in which he met over a DC posting, having done so with the Broncos in 2023. The 61-year-old last held a coordinator position during his four-year run at the helm of the Ravens’ defense from 2005-08. That was followed by head coaching opportunities with the Jets and Bills, but he has not coached since being fired by Buffalo in 2016.
While working as an ESPN analyst, Ryan has not been tangibly connected to many NFL openings (either as a head coach or a DC). The fact the Cowboys – who Schefter notes “loved” Ryan after his interview – are still in touch is certainly notable. The team enjoyed success in a number of categories under Quinn during the past three years, but a poor defensive showing in Dallas’ wild-card loss to the Packers played a signficant role in another early postseason exit. Ryan, Zimmer or another candidate will be tasked with maintaining a consistent level of performance on that side of the ball throughout the campaign.
Zimmer has been out of the NFL coaching ranks since he was fired by the Vikings at the end of the 2021 campaign. His tenure as Minnesota’s head coach was preceded in part by a 13-year tenure with the Cowboys, including seven seasons as defensive coordinator. Zimmer would thus represent an experienced option for Mike McCarthy‘s staff and a familiar face for owner Jerry Jones, but he appears to still have competition for a return to where his NFL coaching career began.
Updated 2024 NFL Draft Order
With Super Bowl LVIII in the books, the 2023 campaign has come to a close. Teams outside Kansas City and San Francisco had already turned their attention to the offseason well before Sunday’s game, of course.
Regular season standings determine the order for the top 18 picks, so they have been known since the conclusion of Week 18. For the second straight year, the Bears face the question of dealing away the top selection and starting over at quarterback or re-committing to Justin Fields. Expectations still point toward Caleb Williams heading to Chicago, although the Bears will not move the No. 1 pick at a discounted price.
With the Commanders also in position to add a signal-caller second overall, the Patriots and Cardinals will be worth watching closely. New England will be in the market for a QB, but it may not come via the team’s top selection. Arizona’s position could also be a trade-up target for teams seeking a quarterback addition. This year’s class is expected to be dominated by blue-chip prospects under center, as well as at wide receiver and offensive tackle.
The final 14 spots in the draft order are filled by postseason results. The Chiefs find themselves in familiar territory picking at or near the end of the first-round order for the fourth time in the past five years following another Super Bowl appearance. The team has a mixed track record with its selections in that regard, but another impact rookie would of course help its bid to sustain its impressive run.
While a number of selections will no doubt be swapped between now and draft day, here is the full 2024 first-round order:
- Chicago Bears (via Panthers)
- Washington Commanders: 4-13
- New England Patriots: 4-13
- Arizona Cardinals: 4-13
- Los Angeles Chargers: 5-12
- New York Giants: 6-11
- Tennessee Titans: 6-11
- Atlanta Falcons: 7-10
- Chicago Bears: 7-10
- New York Jets: 7-10
- Minnesota Vikings: 7-10
- Denver Broncos: 8-9
- Las Vegas Raiders: 8-9
- New Orleans Saints: 9-8
- Indianapolis Colts: 9-8
- Seattle Seahawks: 9-8
- Jacksonville Jaguars: 9-8
- Cincinnati Bengals: 9-8
- Los Angeles Rams: 10-7
- Pittsburgh Steelers: 10-7
- Miami Dolphins: 11-6
- Philadelphia Eagles: 11-6
- Houston Texans (via Browns)
- Dallas Cowboys: 12-5
- Green Bay Packers: 9-8
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 9-8
- Arizona Cardinals (via Texans)
- Buffalo Bills: 11-6
- Detroit Lions: 12-5
- Baltimore Ravens: 13-4
- San Francisco 49ers: 12-5
- Kansas City Chiefs: 11-6
Ryan Tannehill On Steelers’ Radar?
After Will Levis took over for an injured Ryan Tannehill midway through the 2023 season, the latter’s Titans tenure appeared to come to a close. Tannehill is a pending free agent, but he should draw interest from a number of potential suitors. 
One of those is likely to be the Steelers, Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo of NFL Network write. Pittsburgh hired ex-Falcons head coach Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator, meaning a Tannehill deal would mark a reunion. He and Smith worked together in Tennessee, during which time Tannehill had the most productive seasons of his career.
Smith served as the Titans’ OC in 2019 and ’20, Tannehill’s first two campaigns in Nashville. He earned his lone Pro Bowl nod, along with Comeback Player of the Year honors in 2019 while averaging a league-leading 9.2 yards per attempt. The former Dolphins first-rounder followed that up with 3,819 yards and a 33:7 touchdown-to-interception ratio, proving to be a solid fit in Smith’s run-heavy scheme. With Levis now in the fold, though, Tannehill (along with fellow stalwart Derrick Henry) is on track to depart in free agency.
In three seasons since Smith parlayed his coordinator success into Atlanta’s head coaching gig, Tannehill has regressed statistically while dealing with multiple injuries. In November, he was demoted to backup behind Levis, who showed flashes in his rookie campaign. Tannehill – who insisted he did not seek out his release in the aftermath of that decision – started the final three games of the campaign with Levis sidelined, giving him one last audition period before reaching the open market.
Tannehill, 35, is one of several veteran signal-callers in this year’s projected free agent class. Kirk Cousins, Baker Mayfield and Gardner Minshew could command more lucrative deals if they do not remain with their respective teams, but Tannehill could at least compete for a starting role in the right environment. Pittsburgh has Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph and Mitch Trubisky in place for now, but changes at the position are expected.
Trubisky is likely to be released after finding himself demoted to third-stringer, while Rudolph is a pending free agent. He could be retained, but a new deal would likely depend on the potential of winning the starting position in training camp. Pickett is under team control for at least two more years, but he was passed over in favor of Rudolph during the team’s late-season playoff push and wild-card loss. The 2022 first-rounder will enter the offseason as QB1, but a competition will take place.
Tannehill will be in line for a far smaller deal than the four-year, $118MM pact he signed in 2020 on his next contract. The Steelers, meanwhile, are among the teams currently set to be over the salary cap for the 2024 league year, although they like all others will make a number of cost-cutting moves in the coming weeks. Any interest between the two parties will be worth watching as the QB market begins to take shape.
Bears Likely To Release S Eddie Jackson?
During the 2023 season, the future of Bears safety Eddie Jackson was unclear. A potential trade chip, he was not dealt at the trade deadline. It would come as a surprise if he were in Chicago for the 2024 campaign, however. 
Jackson recently appeared to bid farewell to the city in an Instagram post, The 30-year-old has spent his entire career with the Bears, but injuries and finances have become a complicating factor in his situation. Jackson last played a full campaign in 2020, and he has recorded more than one interception in a season only once during that span.
The two-time Pro Bowler is due $14.15MM in 2024, the final season of his current contract. No guaranteed salary exists on his pact, however, so the Bears could move on with little financial implications. A release before June 1 would yield $12.56MM in savings with a dead cap charge of $5.58MM. Designating him a post-June 1 cut would alter those figures to $14.15MM and $3.99MM, respectively. Jackson’s brief message implies he will be let go in the near future, a move which would come as little surprise given the financial benefits of doing so.
Jackson’s resurgent 2022 performance – in which he recorded four interceptions and a pair of forced fumbles – drew a PFF grade of 76.2, the second-highest mark of his career. His rating this year (58.6) was in line with his others in recent seasons, though, due in part to poor coverage grades. The Alabama product allowed three touchdowns and a passer rating of 120.6 in coverage in 2023, something which would hurt his value in the event he reached free agency.
Jackson was mentioned as a name to watch on the trade front in advance of the trade deadline. Taking on the 2024 portion of his contract would have been burdensome for an acquiring team, though, and he finished out the year with Chicago. The former fourth-rounder logged a 100% snap share in each game he was healthy for, proving his ability to log a starter’s workload with the Bears or a new team moving forward.
Chicago has 2022 second-rounder Jaquan Brisker in place as a safety starter, and he will be counted on as a key defender for the foreseeable future. The Bears have a number of other inexpensive options at the position, including Elijah Hicks, Jaylon Jones, Quindell Johnson, Douglas Coleman and Adrian Colbert. Jackson, a veteran of 100 starts, could offer at least experienced depth on the backend of an interested team, although a free agent agreement would likely come at a much lower cost than what he is currently due.
Raiders Remain Interested In Re-Signing RB Josh Jacobs
One of the central figures in the running back franchise tag situation last offseason, Josh Jacobs was unable to work out a multi-year agreement with the Raiders. The parties landed on a one-year compromise, but they now face a similar set of circumstances. 
[RELATED: Raiders Planning QB Addition]
Jacobs is a pending free agent, something with less lucrative implications for running backs than many other positions. The 2022 rushing champion is set to negotiate with new power brokers compared to last offseason, given the dismissal of Dave Ziegler and Josh McDaniels and their replacement with Antonio Pierce and Tom Telesco. Ziegler expressed a desire to re-engage in talks in 2024, and that sentiment appears to exist with the new regime.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports the Raiders are interested in exploring a Jacobs deal, though he cautions the team is prepared to do so “depending on the price.” Jacobs missed the final four games of the season, but he remained a key member of the team’s offense when on the field. He received 20 or more carries on five occasions in 2023, garnering added attention after Pierce took over as interim head coach.
As Fowler notes, Jacobs was a talking point while Pierce and the Raiders were conducting their offensive coordinator search. That process resulted in Luke Getsy being tapped for the role. His time in Chicago saw him oversee a run-based attack, and having Jacobs in the fold would give the Raiders’ ground game valuable stability. The Alabama alum will be 26 by the start of next season, and he has logged at least 217 carries in each of his five NFL seasons.
Jacobs’ workload could be a factor working against his market value, coupled with the overall landscape of the RB position. Fellow veterans Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry, Austin Ekeler and Tony Pollard are among the backs set to hit the open market next month. Jacobs averaged a career-high 4.9 yards per carry in 2022, but that figure dropped to 3.5 this season. He finished with 805 rushing yards and six touchdowns, matching the yards-per-rush mark as the lowest totals of his career.
The franchise tag is projected to cost roughly $12.4MM for running backs this season, but a second Jacobs tag would cost 120% of his 2023 earnings. Vegas would thus be required to spend at least $14.16MM on the two-time Pro Bowler, a figure which would likely outweigh his value on a multi-year agreement with the Raiders or an outside team. Coming off a down season in 2023, his market will be worth watching closely as the team contemplates its first offseason with new faces on the sidelines and in the front office.
Micah Parsons Not Actively Pursuing Cowboys Extension
The 2024 offseason will require a number of key financial decisions involving the Cowboys’ nucleus. Top of the list in that respect is a new deal for quarterback Dak Prescott, but wideout CeeDee Lamb and edge rusher Micah Parsons are also eligible for monster extensions of their own. 
Lamb was drafted in 2020, one year before Parsons. The former is on the books for $17.99MM in 2024 on his fifth-year option, but Parsons will no doubt have his option picked up this spring. That move will keep him in place through the 2025 campaign. As a result, Lamb represents a more pressing order of business for Dallas.
Parsons acknowledged as much during a recent appearance on NFL Network’s Super Bowl Live. As a result, he is not aggressively pursuing an extension, one which will likely put him at or near the top of the pecking order among edge rushers. Lamb, too, will not come cheap on his second contract; he has publicly stated a desire to become the NFL’s highest-paid receiver.
Lamb posted single-season franchise records for both receptions (135) and yards (1,749) in 2023, scoring a career-high 14 total touchdowns along the way. The 24-year-old earned a first-team All-Pro nod along with a third career Pro Bowl invite as a result, and he could command an AAV at or near Tyreek Hill‘s market-setting $30MM on his next pact. Negotiations on that front will likely take precedence over talks with Parsons, though the latter is amenable to hammering out a deal in the near future.
“If they’re ready to talk about a deal and get a deal done, I’ll be super excited,” Parsons said. “You know I’m ready to be [with the] Cowboys for life, this is the team I wanted to be with, this is the team I want to win a championship with.”
Parsons has racked up 40.5 sacks in his three seasons with the Cowboys, posting at least 13 in each campaign. That consistency has earned the former Defensive Rookie of the Year a number of accolades (three total All-Pro honors, three Pro Bowl nods) and upped his market value. A new Parsons contract will not kick in until 2026, by which time the edge market may have seen further growth from what has already taken place. Nick Bosa received the league’s largest deal for a non-quarterback in September, inking a $34MM-per-year 49ers extension with $122.5MM guaranteed.
Parsons will no doubt be aiming for a pact similar or larger in value to Bosa’s when the time comes to work out a mega-extension. That time will likely not come this offseason, though, or at least not until the Prescott and Lamb situations gain more clarity. In any case, developments on the Parsons front will be worth monitoring given his importance to Dallas’ defense.
Chargers To Retain ST Coordinator Ryan Ficken
The offensive and defensive coordinators hired on Jim Harbaugh‘s initial Chargers staff have come about as planned. Greg Roman and Jesse Minter are in place to begin a new chapter in their respective working relationships with Harbaugh, but the same is not the case for the coach at the helm on special teams.
The Chargers are retaining Ryan Ficken, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. That move comes as no surprise on a few levels. As Pelissero notes, Los Angeles blocked Ficken from interviewing elsewhere even amidst the expectation that Harbaugh’s son, Jay Harbaugh, would follow his father from Michigan to the pro level. Instead, Jay has reached agreement to join the Seahawks as their special teams coordinator.
That move all-but sealed Ficken’s fate with respect to remaining in Los Angeles moving forward. The 43-year-old took his first NFL coaching position in 2007 with the Vikings. He remained in Minnesota from 2007-12 while coaching the team’s running backs and receivers. In 2013, he began working with special teams, taking over as coordinator for the 2021 campaign.
Ficken’s showing during that time led him to the Chargers, where he has guided L.A.’s special teams for the past two seasons. The Chargers ranked sixth in special teams DVOA in 2022, improving to second in that regard this past campaign. The team also finished strong in both years with respect to Rick Gosselin’s highly-acclaimed special teams rankings, posting finishes of seventh and fifth, respectively.
Given that level of success, expectations will be high on special teams in 2024 for the Chargers as they look to take a needed step forward in a number of other areas. Los Angeles’ third phase will have welcomed continuity on the sidelines, and Ficken will continue in his posting for at least one more season. Another strong campaign would no doubt lead to a repeat of interest around the league for outside coaching opportunities.
Robert Kraft Addresses Patriots’ Cash Spending
The issue of cash spending has been a talking point for the Patriots in recent years in particular, but the departure of Bill Belichick and the cap situation the team is in could bring about a change. When speaking about the matter, owner Robert Kraft pushed back on criticism of the team’s financial approach while stating money will not be an issue in the coming offseason. 
“I know there’s a perception that we have held back on spending,” Kraft said, via Nicole Yang of the Boston Globe. “Let me just say, for our fans, that’s just not true.”
New England ranked 31st in the league with respect to cash (as opposed to salary cap) spending in 2023, continuing a trend in terms of Belichick’s roster management preferences as de facto general manager. The Patriots do not have a recent track record of retaining many homegrown players on second contracts, relying heavily on players on their rookie deals and low-cost veterans. Things could change moving forward with Eliot Wolf now in charge of roster decisions, but Kraft defended the approach Belichick employed for many years.
“Look, we were blessed to have a coach in our system who was a great coach and also understood value,” Kraft added. “He ran a tight ship. They say we’ve been low spenders in the last 10 years, and that might be true, but we had a pretty good record. And we won three Super Bowls. But our coaches have always had the ability to spend at whatever level they wanted.”
The issue of finances was a public talking point this summer between Belichick and Kraft in advance of the season in which their storied working relationship ultimately came to an end. New head coach Jerod Mayo will oversee the team’s transition, one which will likely include a starting quarterback being added either in free agency or the draft. The Patriots have the No. 3 selection as well as the third-most cap space in the league at the moment, so their new brain trust will have considerable flexibility in attempting to rebound from the struggles of the post-Tom Brady era.