Vikings To Re-Sign LS Andrew DePaola
The Vikings are re-signing three-time Pro Bowl long snapper Andrew DePaola, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. The sides have agreed to a one-year, fully guaranteed deal worth $1.725MM.
DePaola, who went undrafted out of Rutgers in 2012, worked as a bartender before catching on with the Buccaneers two years later. He then went on to log four straight 16-game seasons – three with the Bucs and another with the Bears. The Raiders gave DePaola a four-year deal in 2018, but a torn ACL limited him to one game that season.
After the Raiders released DePaola in the ensuing offseason, he was unable to secure a roster spot anywhere in 2019. Since resurfacing on the Vikings’ practice squad in 2020, DePaola has turned into a fixture on their special teams unit. He has put up four 17-game seasons, including last year, and earned a total of four All-Pro selections. The soon-to-be 39-year-old is now in line to remain in Minnesota for at least another season.
With DePaola’s help, kicker Will Reichard nailed 33 of 35 field goals (94.3%) and all 31 extra points en route to first-team All-Pro honors in 2025. DePaola will continue snapping to Reichard in 2026, but he will work with a different punter after Ryan Wright left for New Orleans on Monday.
Colts To Re-Sign Alec Pierce
Highly touted wide receiver Alec Pierce will not hit the open market. The Colts and Pierce have agreed to a deal, Jordan Schultz reports. It’s a four-year, $116MM pact, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The contract contains $84MM in guarantees and $60MM fully guaranteed at signing, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network relays.
This is a best-case scenario for the Colts, who are now in position to keep their top receiver and starting quarterback Daniel Jones. After the Colts placed the transition tag on Jones last Tuesday, there was fear Pierce would exit. The 25-year-old even suggested he would test the market. The 2022 second-round pick from Cincinnati will instead continue his career in Indianapolis.
[RELATED: Colts To Trade Michael Pittman Jr. To Steelers]
As PFR’s second-ranked free agent, Pierce drew substantial interest before agreeing to stick with the Colts. The Patriots, Raiders, 49ers and Chargers all eyed Pierce, but he turned down more money to remain in Indianapolis, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic. The Commanders were also “aggressive” in the derby, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN adds.
New England was not willing to match Indy’s bid, Jeff Howe of The Athletic reports. The Patriots will now turn their attention elsewhere (perhaps an A.J. Brown trade) as they seek a difference-making receiver to replace the released Stefon Diggs.
Although Pierce has never reached 50 catches in a season, he has emerged as one of the game’s elite downfield threats. The 6-foot-3, 211-pounder led the NFL in yards per catch in each of the past two seasons. During a career year in 2025, he caught 47 balls for 1,003 yards (21.3 YPC) and six touchdowns over 15 games. It was the first time the durable Pierce has missed more than one game in a season.
On a per-year basis, Pierce has averaged around 39 catches, 734 yards and four touchdowns. That is not No. 1-caliber production, but Pierce will benefit from the league’s significant cap increase. He now ranks ninth at his position in total money, right behind the Bengals’ Tee Higgins. Pierce checks in at 10th in yearly average, once again just behind Higgins. An $84MM guarantee would put him in a fifth-place tie with Brown.
With Pierce under wraps, the Colts will likely put more focus on a long-term deal with Jones. Otherwise, they could risk losing him to an offer sheet. General manager Chris Ballard has until July 15 to reach an agreement with Jones.
Steelers To Acquire, Extend WR Michael Pittman Jr.
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.
Bills To Sign QB Kyle Allen
The Bills are bringing veteran QB Kyle Allen back for a second stint. The sides have agreed to a two-year, $4.1MM contract, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports. The deal carries a max value of $6.1MM.
Allen was previously a Bill in 2023, though the ultra-durable Josh Allen was their only quarterback to attempt a pass that year. Kyle Allen, who is close friends with Josh Allen, will replace Mitchell Trubisky as the Bills’ backup in 2026. Trubisky agreed to sign with the Titans on Monday.
Kyle Allen entered the pros as an undrafted free agent from Houston in 2018. He briefly became the Panthers’ primary starter a year later. A season-ending foot injury to Cam Newton in Week 2 thrust Allen into action. He went on to complete 62% of attempts for 3,322 yards, 17 touchdowns, 16 interceptions and an 80.0 passer rating in 13 games (12 starts).
That was not enough for Allen to retain a spot in Carolina, which traded him to Washington for a fifth-round pick in 2020. The Panthers turned to Teddy Bridgewater as their QB1 that year, while Allen joined Alex Smith and Dwayne Haskins as Washington passers to total at least four starts. Allen completed 60 of 87 passes (69%) for 610 yards, four TDs and a pick.
In the past five seasons, the 30-year-old Allen picked up just two starts (both with Houston in 2022). Since his first run with the Bills ended, Allen has spent a year apiece in Pittsburgh and Detroit. He has thrown just three regular-season passes in the past three years. In 34 games and 19 starts in the league, Allen has hit on 62.1% of passes, averaged 6.7 yards per attempt, and tossed 26 TDs against 21 INTs. He owns a career 82.1 passer rating.
Panthers To Sign QB Kenny Pickett
Kenny Pickett is once again on the move. The quarterback is joining the Panthers via a one-year contract, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The pact is worth up to $7.5MM, per Schefter. The deal also includes $4MM in guaranteed money.
Pickett was the 20th overall pick in the 2022 draft, but he is already joining his fifth team four years later. The former Pitt Panther began his career as the Steelers’ primary starter from 2022-23. Across 24 starts, Pickett mustered an underwhelming 13 touchdowns against 13 interceptions.
After Pickett failed to establish himself as the Steelers’ solution under center, they brought in Russell Wilson as a replacement in the spring of 2024. The Steelers then traded Pickett and the 120th pick in that year’s draft to the Eagles for the 98th selection and a seventh-round choice in 2025. With Jalen Hurts entrenched as the Eagles’ starter, Pickett unsurprisingly saw little action during a Super Bowl-winning season for the club.
Pickett wound up on the move twice more before the start of the 2025 campaign. The Eagles traded Pickett to the Browns for fellow signal-caller Dorian Thompson-Robinson and a fifth-rounder last March. Expectations were that Pickett would compete for the Browns’ starting gig, but a training camp hamstring injury took a sledgehammer to his chances. Joe Flacco won the job, while rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders rounded out the depth chart behind him.
When Cleveland settled on its Flacco-Gabriel-Sanders depth chart last August, it dealt Pickett to Las Vegas for a fifth-rounder. Although Geno Smith struggled during a dreadful season for the Raiders, he still started 15 games. Pickett filled in for an injured Smith twice and finished the year 28 of 45 for 188 yards, a touchdown and two picks.
Coming off an NFC South-winning season in 2025, the Panthers are sticking with Bryce Young as their starting QB. But it appears Pickett will have a chance to steal the No. 2 role away from 38-year-old Andy Dalton. General manager Dan Morgan said last month that the Panthers “want to get a little younger and a little more athletic at that backup quarterback spot.” Pickett, 27, may be their answer.
Ben Levine contributed to this post.
Raiders To Sign LB Quay Walker
The Raiders are making a major addition to the middle of their defense. They have agreed to a deal with linebacker Quay Walker, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network report. Walker will sign a four-year, $40.5MM contract with $28MM in guarantees, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
The Cowboys were among the teams in the mix for Walker before he reached an agreement with the Raiders, Todd Archer of ESPN relays. Walker had a Zoom meeting with the Cowboys on Monday, but they could not fend off the Raiders for the 25-year-old.
Walker, the 22nd pick in the 2022 draft, served as a full-time starter in Green Bay throughout his four-year run there. The former Georgia Bulldog opened his career with three straight 100-tackle seasons, during which he combined for 6.5 sacks. The Packers still declined Walker’s fifth-year option for 2026 last spring, though it did not come as a surprise. The league controversially groups middle and outside LBs together for valuation purposes. Teams typically turn down the option for middle linebackers, as the Jaguars (Devin Lloyd) also did last year.
Playing what proved to be his last Packers season in 2025, Walker collected a career-high 128 tackles in 14 games. He added eight TFL, a personal-best seven QB hits, five passes defensed and 2.5 sacks. Despite quality production, Pro Football Focus took a harsh view of Walker’s 2025 in ranking his performance 76th among 88 qualifiers at his position.
In heading to Las Vegas, Walker will reunite with former Georgia teammate Nakobe Dean. After spending his first four seasons in Philadelphia, Dean agreed to a three-year, $36MM pact with the Raiders on Monday. Walker and Dean starred in college as part of Georgia’s linebacker corps, especially during a national title-winning campaign in 2021. They will reunite in a remade Raiders LB group. Devin White, Elandon Roberts and Jamal Adams were Las Vegas’ top LBs last year, but all three are now unsigned.
While the Raiders traded superstar pass rusher Maxx Crosby to the Ravens last week, they have since made several noteworthy investments to improve a roster that finished last in 2025. Before bringing in Walker and Dean, the Raiders acquired nickel cornerback Taron Johnson from the Bills, re-signed corner Eric Stokes, and reached free agent agreements with center Tyler Linderbaum, defensive end Kwity Paye and receiver Jalen Nailor.
Chargers To Re-Sign OL Trevor Penning
The Chargers are re-signing offensive lineman Trevor Penning, per Adam Schefter of ESPN. It’s a one-year, $4.5MM agreement.
The Saints spent the 19th pick in 2022 on Penning, though the former Northern Iowa standout has not lived up to his draft slot. After a mediocre first three seasons divided between the tackle positions, the Saints declined Penning’s fifth-year option last spring. New Orleans then shifted Penning to left guard, but turf toe kept him out of its first three games last season.
Once Penning returned to health, he started six straight games before the Saints sent him to the Chargers for a 2027 sixth-rounder at last November’s trade deadline. The Chargers, then dealing with a rash of injuries up front, were in dire need of depth. Penning wound up totaling 193 offensive snaps with the Chargers down the stretch. The plurality of the 26-year-old’s work came at right guard (90 snaps), but he also saw action as an in-line tight end (50) and at left tackle (47).
The Chargers went all of last season without injured left tackle Rashawn Slater and most of it without right tackle Joe Alt. Those two cornerstones should be at full strength next year, but Penning could provide depth behind them. He also may be in the mix for playing time at guard, where the Chargers have lost both starters from last season. The team released Mekhi Becton, and free agent Zion Johnson agreed to a three-year, $49.5MM contract with the Browns on Monday.
Cardinals To Sign QB Gardner Minshew
Nomadic quarterback Gardner Minshew has found his sixth NFL team. Minshew will sign a one-year, $8.25MM contract with the Cardinals, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
A 47-game starter over his seven-year career, Minshew may be in the mix for playing time in Arizona. The Cardinals are moving on from longtime starter Kyler Murray, whom they plan to release. Journeyman Jacoby Brissett is on the roster as a de facto starter, but he could draw trade interest.
A 2019 sixth-rounder from Washington State, Minshew unexpectedly worked as the Jaguars’ primary starter in his rookie season. Nick Foles entered the year as the starter, but Minshew stepped in after he broke his clavicle in the opener. Foles returned later in the season, though he struggled enough that Minshew reclaimed the starting role.
While Minshew combined for 20 starts over his first two seasons, the Jaguars went just 7-13 during that stretch. Shortly before the 2021 season started, the Jags dealt Minshew to the Eagles for a sixth-round pick.
After two seasons as Philadelphia’s backup, Minshew signed a one-year, $3.5MM deal with the Colts to join first-round rookie Anthony Richardson in 2023. With multiple injuries limiting Richardson to four games, Minshew performed well over 13 starts. The Colts remained committed to Richardson, though, leading Minshew to accept the Raiders’ two-year, $25MM offer in 2024.
Even though Minshew went into ’24 as the Raiders’ starter, he was unable to hold the job for the whole year. The Raiders released Minshew after a disappointing season. He stayed in the AFC West to work as the Chiefs’ backup behind Patrick Mahomes last year. Mahomes suffered a torn ACL in Week 15, which could have given Minshew a chance to start for the rest of the season. However, making his first Chiefs start against the Titans the next week, Minshew went down with what was believed to be an ACL tear. It turned out to be a non-displaced tibial plateau fracture.
Minshew was reportedly back to full health as of three weeks ago. The 29-year-old will now catch on with the Cardinals as the owner of a career 63.1% completion rate with 68 touchdowns, 35 interceptions and an 88.0 passer rating over 63 games.
Bengals To Sign DE Boye Mafe
The Bengals are adding former Seahawks edge rusher Boye Mafe, agent Mike McCartney announced. Mafe will sign a three-year, $60MM contract, insider Jordan Schultz relays.
Cincinnati’s pass rush took a hit when defensive end Joseph Ossai agreed to sign with the Jets on Monday. The Bengals are also expected to lose their best D-end, Trey Hendrickson, to free agency. At least one outside pass-rushing addition became a necessity for the Bengals, whose defense was among the NFL’s worst in 2025. The unit ranked 26th in sacks, 30th in scoring and 31st in total defense.
Mafe has not posted Hendrickson-like production (few have), but he should at least serve as a credible Ossai replacement. The four-year veteran has 20 career sacks over 65 games (34 starts). In 2023, Mafe’s most productive year, he worked as a full-time starter and tallied 52 tackles, 16 QB hits, nine sacks, nine TFL and six passes defensed in 16 contests.
Mafe notched another 12 QB hits and six sacks during a 15-game, 11-start 2024, but the 27-year-old took on a lesser role for the Super Bowl champions last season. The former second-rounder from Minnesota came off the bench in 13 of 17 games and logged a 50% defensive snap share. Mafe could only muster four QB hits and a pair of sacks, but he nonetheless entered free agency with plenty of earning potential. He will indeed rake in a substantial raise in moving from Seattle to Cincinnati.
Mafe’s exit is the latest blow to the Seahawks’ roster on the first day of the league’s free agent negotiating period. They previously lost running back/Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III to the Chiefs and safety Coby Bryant to the Bears.
Titans To Sign CB Cor’Dale Flott
Cornerback Cor’Dale Flott is leaving the Giants for the Titans, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports. Flott and the Titans have agreed to a three-year, $45MM contract with $32MM fully guaranteed.
This is the third free agent the Titans have stolen from the Giants on Monday. The Titans previously added wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson on a four-year, $70MM agreement. They also signed tight end Daniel Bellinger to a three-year, $24MM pact.
Flott and the Giants were seemingly progressing toward an agreement earlier Monday, but the 24-year-old will join Robinson and Bellinger in Tennessee instead. The Giants almost had a deal in place with Flott before new Titans coach Robert Saleh persuaded him to exit at the last minute, per Connor Hughes of SNY. Saleh won Flott over in explaining what he could accomplish in Tennessee’s defense.
Flott, a 2022 third-round pick from LSU, combined for 23 starts in 39 appearances over his first three years with the Giants. The former slot corner then emerged as a full-time boundary starter in 2025.
While taking a starting job from former first-rounder Deonte Banks, Flott totaled 38 tackles, 11 passes defensed and an interception in 14 games. The 6-foot-2 Flott also registered his best coverage work (per Pro-Football-Reference) in yielding a 52.2% completion rate as the closest defender and holding quarterbacks to a 73.3 passer rating. Those numbers were much better than Flott’s 2024 output (66.7%, 89.0), but his most recent showing was enough to convince the Saleh-led Titans to dole out a sizable contract.
The Flott signing is part of a massive defensive makeover under Saleh and coordinator Gus Bradley. The Titans’ defense ranked 21st in yards and 28th in points in 2025, but the unit now looks far better on paper. Tennessee got to work in trading defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat to the Jets for end Jermaine Johnson in late February. Since the negotiating window opened Monday, the Titans’ defense has scooped up Flott, fellow corner Alontae Taylor and coveted interior lineman John Franklin-Myers.