Chiefs’ Rookie Josh Simmons To Start At LT If Healthy?
JUNE 15: Apparently, Simmons is the Chiefs’ preferred left tackle for 2025, provided he can return to full health. ESPN’s Adam Teicher says if the rookie is a full participant in this week’s minicamp, that will bode well for his chances of opening the season as Patrick Mahomes‘ Week 1 blindside blocker. Teicher says Moore will only step in at LT if Simmons is unable to play.
JUNE 8: After falling just short of a Super Bowl three-peat, the Chiefs were forced to reckon with how much the team that did win the Super Bowl dominated them in the trenches. As a result, Kansas City’s first three picks in the draft and its biggest free agent signing all addressed the offensive and defensive lines. Their top overall draft pick, though, is likely not expected to be a main contributor to start the 2025 season, according to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. 
The Chiefs traded back a spot and utilized the final pick of the first round on Ohio State offensive tackle Josh Simmons. Simmons started his collegiate career at San Diego State, starting every game of his redshirt freshman season at right tackle before transferring to Columbus. He immediately stepped in as the Buckeyes starting left tackle in 2023, and even though he missed 10 games last year, he still earned All-Big Ten honorable mention.
Part of the reason Simmons is not expected to start in Week 1 is because of what caused him to miss 10 games last year. Projected to be in contention for the honor of top lineman in the draft, Simmons draft stock took a hit when he suffered a ruptured patellar tendon only six games into the season. Apart from how challenging it can be for a rookie to adjust to the NFL game, Breer notes that that kind of knee injury can be harder for big men to come back from than a torn ACL.
Add in the fact that the Chief’s biggest free agent signing this offseason was former 49ers backup offensive tackle Jaylon Moore, and the team’s plans start to become clear. Moore came to Kansas City on a two-year, $30MM deal after four years in San Francisco, where he served as a swing tackle who started games in place of Trent Williams and others. Over the course of his rookie contract, Moore played in 55 games but started only 12 of them.
The beauty of signing Moore to a two-year deal is that it will likely serve two purposes. In 2025, Moore is expected to man the starting left tackle spot across from Jawaan Taylor. This will allow Simmons to take his time to recover to full health and catch up to the speed of the NFL game with no pressure. The second purpose was hinted at over a month ago, when head coach Andy Reid expressed the team’s view that Moore could play multiple positions on the offensive line. Considering he’s never played at snap at guard in the NFL, the presumption, then, is that Reid means he can play both left and right tackle.
After the 2025 season, Taylor’s contract contains a potential out that reduces his dead cap money from $34.78MM if cut in 2025 to $7.39MM if cut in the next league year. One could imagine, Breer posits, that Kansas City would be able to free up $20MM of cap space, move Moore from left to right tackle, and let Simmons take over at left tackle in 2026.
So, sure, Simmons isn’t expected to start Week 1 in 2025, but that also doesn’t exactly mean that he’ll be redshirting his rookie year. Once he’s fully healthy, the Chiefs will likely try to work Simmons into the line somehow. Maybe they’ll start him out on the interior, or they could shift Moore inside, if Reid really meant what he said about multiple positions, and allow Simmons to get accustomed to the starting spot on the blind side. Either way, the plan for Simmons is likely focused much further out than Week 1 of the upcoming season.
Players Interested In Olympic Flag Football
Since the announcement that the NFL’s ownership group would allow active NFL players to participate in the 2028 Summer Olympics’ flag football event, there’s been plenty of speculation on which players might find themselves representing the US of A. While Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes made it known that he had no intentions of playing, and Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill claimed he’d rather do track, there have been some players who have expressed interest. 
If Team USA is looking for a quarterback, it needn’t look past last year’s MVP. According to ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg, Bills quarterback Josh Allen is prepared to throw his hat in the ring. In a quote to the media, Allen made sure not to disrespect the current quarterbacks of the flag football community but claimed that he “would absolutely love to” play if the opportunity presented itself.
While we haven’t seen any other offensive weapons volunteer themselves to potentially play with Allen, Team USA has a few offers on defense. If they play their cards right, the country’s national flag football team could land the two cornerbacks that topped Pro Football Focus’s positional rankings in 2022.
The Jets released a video this week of star cornerback Sauce Gardner expressing his interest in playing. Gardner told reporters that he “definitely would be interested in…being able to play for (his) country.” The third-year cornerback had a relatively down year after two first-team All-Pro seasons to open his career, but I imagine Team USA would at least do their homework to see how he’d fit on the team.
If the Olympic team really wants to create a shutdown cornerback tandem, Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain has also offered his services. According to Luca Evans of The Denver Post, Surtain spoke at an event for his foundation earlier this month and told the media he has “definitely high interest” in playing, calling the possibility a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Ultimately, it’ll be a couple years before we truly know who all could be participating. Each team will be able to send one player to the flag football tryouts whenever they take place. At the moment, it sounds like Allen, Gardner, and Surtain are making bids to be the representatives from Buffalo, New York, and Denver.
Raiders Could Field New-Look Starting Secondary
Looking at how things are going in offseason workouts so far, there’s a chance that the Raiders could see only one starter from last year’s secondary return with the first-team defense in 2025. We already saw a free agent exchange at safety, with Tre’von Moehrig being replaced by Jeremy Chinn after signing with the Panthers. Now, according to ESPN’s Ryan McFadden, both of last year’s starting cornerbacks are working with the second team this summer. 
In his report earlier this week, McFadden noted that, so far in Organized Team Activities, it’s been free agent addition Eric Stokes and rookie third-round pick Darien Porter running on the first-team defense, while Jakorian Bennett and Decamerion Richardson, who tied for the second-most starts in the team’s cornerbacks room last year, are getting reps on the second team.
This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. Last year, the Raiders didn’t have a single cornerback rank in the top half of players at the position with enough snaps to qualify for Pro Football Focus’s rankings system (subscription required). Nate Hobbs (72nd of 116) was the highest ranked corner on the team, and Jack Jones (102nd) was cut after starting 16 games in 2024. Bennett (85th) and Richardson (114th) were then tasked with holding off Stokes, who ranked 72nd in Green Bay last year, and the rookie, Porter.
Though Stokes has never started for a full season, he’s got plenty of experience on first-team defenses after starting 32 of 45 appearances during his time with the Packers. Statistically and analytically, Stokes’ rookie campaign was by far his best. That year, he started 14 games, nabbed an interception, and registered 14 passes defensed, earning him a ranking of 45th out of 116 cornerbacks, per PFF. After a disappointing start to his sophomore season, injuries set in. Stokes ended up missing 22 of 25 games leading up to last year, when he appeared in every game of the season.
Porter’s early starting role comes as a bit of a surprise. Coming into the NFL at 24 years old after a six-year collegiate career at Iowa State, Porter only has seven starts under his belt. Originally a wide receiver commit for the Cyclones, Porter switched to cornerback in his fourth year with the team. After serving as a rotational defender in his first two year on defense, Porter got all seven starts in his sixth year as the team’s CB3. After only seeing four passes defensed in his first two defensive seasons, Porter broke out last year with five passes defensed and three interceptions. That meteoric rise appears set to continue in Las Vegas.
A fourth-round pick two years ago, Bennett started four games as a rookie. He started seven of the team’s first 10 games last season as he tried to play through a torn labrum, per Tashan Reed of The Athletic, but the injury worsened and led Bennett to undergo season-ending surgery. Now, Bennett has two hurdles to overcome as he attempts to earn back a starting role while trying to get back to form following the surgery. Richardson was the one to step in for Bennett in the starting lineup to close out the season. Quarterbacks targeting Richardson completed 30 of 46 passes for 459 yards and three touchdowns during his rookie season.
We still have a long way to go before the start of the season, so any number of updates could change the outlook for the depth chart. At the moment, though, it’s looking like safety Isaiah Pola-Mao could be the only starter from last year’s secondary to return to his role in 2025.
Kicking Competition In New York?
Three weeks ago, we labeled veteran kicker Graham Gano a potential cap casualty for the Giants. At the time, we weren’t sure where his potential replacement would come from. We made note of the team’s signing of Jude McAtamney to a reserve/futures deal, but drew more attention to the litany of established, veteran kickers available on the free agent market. According to Ryan Dunleavy of New York Post Sports, while special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial praised the way Gano closed out the 2024 NFL season, the second-year coach left the door open for a kicking competition this summer with McAtamney. 
Gano has been with the Giants for the past five seasons, putting up some of his best seasons from 2020-22. Unfortunately for Gano, Ghobrial only joined the staff last season. When Ghobrial came in, he would’ve looked at a 2023 campaign that saw Gano miss six of 17 attempts and only appear in eight games before coaching Gano through last year’s 10-game performance in which he converted nine of 11 attempts.
Gano is under contract for the next two years, but his recent injury issues (a knee injury in 2023 and a groin injury in 2024) put the Giants in a difficult spot. His current contract has a potential out built in that makes the dead money of his contract fairly manageable. Cutting him now would leave the team with $1.25MM of dead money and $4.42MM of cap savings. Graham closed out last season strong, but the recent history of regression and injuries makes his hold on the kicking job a bit tenuous.
The Giants initially turned to veteran Greg Joseph as an injury replacement for Gano last year but gave McAtamney a shot off the practice squad later in the season. He wasn’t asked to do much, but he did convert the only two kicks — a 31-yard field goal and an extra point — that he attempted.
Looking back at his capabilities, McAtamney didn’t draw much interest coming out of college. A Northern Ireland-native, McAtamney attempted to join ProKick Australia to develop for a chance to play collegiately, but COVID-19 kept him from traveling down under. Instead, he worked with former Ray Guy Award winner Tom Hackett in Serbia until they were cleared to travel to the states. McAtamney started his American football career at Chowan University, converting six of 10 attempts and 47 extra points for the Division II program.
He transferred to Rutgers after a year with the Hawks and won the starting job for the Scarlet Knights. After only converting on 12 of 18 field goal attempts, though, he ultimately lost the kicking job to Jai Patel, though he retained kickoff duties. The Giants noticed McAtamney at his pro day, where he converted all 10 attempts in front of scouts. The team invited him for a tryout and, eventually, signed him as an undrafted free agent.
At the moment, it looks like the job is Gano’s for the taking in New York, but McAtamney continues to lurk in the background and seems to be doing enough to remain in contention. If McAtamney can impress this summer, the combination of Gano’s cap impact and his recent struggles with injury may open the door a little wider for McAtamney to kick his way through.
Bills DE Joey Bosa Expected Back By Training Camp
Injuries have limited Joey Bosa‘s play in the last three seasons, limiting his free agency potential, as a result. Unfortunately, he’s already found some injury trouble with his new team, but according to Lance Lysowki and Ryan O’Halloran of The Buffalo News, there’s “no question” the veteran pass rusher will be ready in time for training camp. 
Coming off his release from a five-year, $135MM extension, the past year of which included a pay cut, Bosa landed in Buffalo after a brief stint as a free agent. While he was well-compensated on the deal, worth $12.61MM, his injury history likely limited the team’s commitment to a one-year tryout.
If he hits on a number of incentives, Bosa stands to earn an additional $3.51MM and the potential of a more committed contract. Reaching those incentives would require Bosa to play at least 65 percent of the Bills’ defensive snaps (something he hasn’t done since 2021) and register 12.0 sacks (something he hasn’t done since 2017).
Bosa’s pay cut came as a result of missing 20 of 36 games over the 2022 and 2023 seasons. He missed a three-game stretch last year but played in the Chargers’ final 11 games of the regular season, though he only tallied three sacks in that span. While he was able to get on the field, injuries may still have been limiting the 29-year-old. His defensive rating in 2024, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), was the lowest of his career and ranked 71st out of 119 edge defenders.
The news of the early calf injury is certainly not encouraging, seeing as it keeps him off the field during a crucial stretch for helping to learn a new defense, but the certainty of reports that he’ll be back for training camp provide some silver lining. With Von Miller no longer on the roster, Bosa is expected to step in across from Greg Rousseau on the starting defensive line. A.J. Epenesa will continue to run with the first team, until Bosa is ready and may continue to do so until Bosa can earn the spot. Regardless, Buffalo will likely be patient with its new pass rusher, making sure they have a healthy Bosa on hand. Bosa intends for that version of himself to show up at training camp.
Jaguars, Travis Hunter Deal Not Expected Soon
The Jaguars made maybe the biggest move in the draft when they traded up to take Colorado athlete Travis Hunter with the No. 2 overall pick. Now, they just need to get the move over the finish line, but Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tells us that a signed contract is not expected soon. Rapoport says that he expects “Hunter will probably be the last first-rounder to sign.” 
There really isn’t much room for negotiation in rookie contracts, as Rapoport points out, and this makes them notoriously difficult to negotiate. Hunter will end up making around $46.6MM with an approximately $30MM signing bonus, and Hunter can’t really do anything about those numbers. What he can do is negotiate the structure of payments like the signing bonus. Whereas quarterbacks tend to receive a good amount of their signing bonus fairly early on in their initial deals, other players usually need to negotiate those early bonuses up as much as they can.
It sounds like Hunter is using every bit of leverage he has to try to maximize his deal. While it would make sense to try and receive as much money as you can as soon as possible, this process also includes the process of trying to set up the third and fourth years of his rookie deal in a way that makes the team consider giving him an extension sooner rather than allowing him to play out the whole contract.
While Rapoport sees this deal taking some time to get done, he doesn’t anticipate a holdout from Hunter, like we’re seeing in Cincinnati with Shemar Stewart. In fact, we’ve already seen plenty from Hunter at Organized Team Activities this summer, and if he plans on playing both cornerback and wide receiver as a rookie, he’ll need as much offseason practice as he can get, which will also extend contract proceedings.
That infamous two-way ability is, perhaps, his greatest bargaining chip, as the team is essentially getting two players for the price of one. In the early days following the draft, it was reported Hunter’s primary position in Jacksonville would be wide receiver, and we saw him work out there during rookie minicamp. But so far in OTAs, Hunter has been spending most of his time at cornerback.
Hunter is going to have to be one of the hardest working players in the NFL in order to play two ways on Sundays. At the moment, though, he’s making the Jaguars front office work hard to earn his signature. He’ll almost certainly be playing with a signed contract in September, but by the look of it, that signature will only be coming on his terms.
Eagles Sign First-Round LB Jihaad Campbell
One of the last seven unsigned first-round picks of the 2025 NFL Draft put pen to paper today. Alabama defender Jihaad Campbell signed his rookie contract with the Eagles today, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. The four-year deal with a fifth-year option is reportedly worth $14.90MM. Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 adds that Campbell’s deal includes a signing bonus of $7.48MM. 
Campbell comes out of Alabama, where he originally committed to the Crimson Tide as a five-star edge rushing prospect out of IMG Academy (FL). Injuries to the team’s defense forced Campbell out of his natural spot as he filled in as an off-ball linebacker and excelled there. He spent the team’s 2023 campaign almost exclusively playing linebacker but was able to get some playing time back at his old position last year as Alabama utilized his versatility.
There were rumors in the weeks after the draft that Campbell could be the latest in the mold of former Penn State linebackers Micah Parsons and Abdul Carter, who both became eventual pass rushers in the NFL, with thoughts that Campbell could have a chance to return to his old position after all. It doesn’t quite look like that will come to pass, though. Campbell hasn’t been working out, as he continues to rehab a shoulder injury from his last season with the Tide, but defensive coordinator Vic Fangio told the media last week that, once he returned to the field, Campbell would be working out with the linebackers.
Part of his current assignment could be due to the assumption that Nakobe Dean will start the 2025 NFL season on the physically unable to perform list as he continues to recover from a torn patellar tendon suffered late last season. With only last year’s fifth-round linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. to fill in if Dean and Campbell aren’t there, Campbell’s talents are likely needed more at linebacker to start his career. There’s always a chance, though, that Philadelphia ends up cross training him and giving him more freedom and flexibility across the defense.
With Campbell signing his name on the dotted line, the Eagles only have one more rookie to sign to finish up their class. Second-round Texas safety Andrew Mukuba is the lone remaining un-signed rookie in Philadelphia. Here’s a look at the Eagles’ rookie class:
- Round 1, No. 31 (from Chiefs): Jihaad Campbell (LB, Alabama) (signed)
- Round 2, No. 64: Andrew Mukuba (S, Texas)
- Round 4, No. 111 (from Panthers through Broncos): Ty Robinson (DT, Nebraska) (signed)
- Round 5, Nos. 145 (from Jets): Mac McWilliams (CB, Central Florida) (signed)
- Round 5, No. 161: (from Texans): Smael Mondon (LB, Georgia) (signed)
- Round 5, No. 168: Drew Kendall (C, Boston College) (signed)
- Round 6, No. 181 (from Patriots through Chargers): Kyle McCord (QB, Syracuse) (signed)
- Round 6, No. 191 (from Cardinals): Myles Hinton (T, Michigan) (signed)
- Round 6, No. 207 (from Chiefs and Jets): Cameron Williams (T, Texas) (signed)
- Round 6, No. 209 (from Chargers)*: Antwaun Powell-Ryland (OLB, Virginia Tech) (signed)
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/11/25
Here are the midweek minor moves from around the NFL:
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: TE Kevin Foelsch
- Waived: DT Siaki Ika
Ika’s struggles in the NFL continue. A member of LSU’s 2019 National Championship squad, Ika was a third-round pick four years later for the Browns in 2023. After appearing in four games as a rookie, Ika failed to make the roster in his second year in Cleveland. Since October, Ika has signed with and been cut from the practice squads of the Browns, Eagles, and now the Chiefs, with whom he signed a reserve/futures deal at the end of this past season.
Texans To Sign RB Nick Chubb
JUNE 9: Chubb passed his physical today, Russini reports. As a result, he is in position to suit up for the Texans in 2025.
JUNE 8: Shortly after reports that the Texans would be looking into the potential of signing veteran running back Nick Chubb, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports that Chubb is now expected to sign with the Texans on Monday, assuming everything goes well with a workout and physical. 
We’ve seen two full NFL seasons come and go since we last saw Chubb at his best. Once a perennial Pro Bowler and a constant threat to rush for 1,500 yards and double-digit touchdowns, a serious knee injury that resulted in a torn MCL and damaged ACL has plagued Chubb in the past two seasons. The 29-year-old intends to not let it keep him down, though, and he has remained an attractive free agent option as a result.
The Texans are just three seasons removed from a year in which they had the worst rushing offense in the entire league and their top rusher had 427 yards. Before Joe Mixon rushed for 1,016 yards last year, the team hadn’t seen a 1,000-yard rusher since 2019. So even after a season of relative success, in which they had a Pro Bowl running back with over 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns but still finished 15th in the league in rushing, Houston sees room for improvement.
Until this potential move, the team hadn’t touched the position in free agency, mostly because they didn’t lose anyone to free agency, but they did add Woody Marks in the draft. Marks, as a fifth-year transfer at USC, had a breakout season for the Trojans, rushing for 1,133 yards and nine touchdowns while showing a decent ability to catch out of the backfield. Perhaps the Texans believed Marks could compete to be an improved RB2 after Dameon Pierce rushed for only 117 yards before the team’s season finale which featured Mixon for only a single starting drive.
Additionally, some combination of Cam Akers, Dare Ogunbowale, J.J. Taylor, and British Brooks only added a combined 305 rushing yards and one touchdown. All this while sixth-round rookie Jawhar Jordan, out of Louisville, failed to make the initial roster and spent his rookie campaign on the practice squad.
So, ultimately, the potential of adding a veteran like Chubb to this sea of bodies has very little risk of hurting the team, while providing the potential that they can add a savvy, veteran rusher almost two full years removed from the serious injuries that sidelined him. Requiring a workout and physical will provide the team with the ability to walk away while also giving them significant information with which to inform the terms of a contract offer.
Expect a low-risk deal for the team with a potential for high rewards for Chubb should he reach certain benchmarks, if the two sides to put pen to paper tomorrow. This expectation is supported by a recent post by Dianna Russini of The Athletic, who reports that “Chubb received more lucrative offers from other teams but could sign a more incentive-laden contract to join (Mixon) in Houston.”
WR Gabe Davis To Visit Saints
The Gabe Davis 2025 offseason tour continues. Since being released by the Jaguars a month ago, Davis has met with the 49ers, Giants, and Steelers. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Davis is now headed to New Orleans where he’ll meet with a Saints team that could certainly use a receiver of his makeup. 
After impressive contributions for four years as a WR2 in Buffalo, Davis was rewarded in free agency with a three-year, $39MM contract with the Jaguars. Through 10 games with his new team, though, Davis was averaging a career-low 23.9 yards per game and was on track for the lowest touchdown total of his career, as well. His struggles deepened when a meniscus tear required him to undergo season-ending surgery, and Jacksonville cut bait two years early despite the massive dead money doing so stuck them with.
In New Orleans, the Saints fielded a bottom-10 pass offense in the NFL last season, and with Derek Carr‘s retirement, improving on that in 2025 won’t be easy. New Orleans will have three young, inexperienced quarterbacks battling it out for the right to lead the offense this season, so having an experienced receiving corps could be extremely beneficial for the winning quarterback’s chances for success.
In 2024, the team’s leader in receiving yards was tight end Juwan Johnson, followed closely by running back Alvin Kamara, tight end Foster Moreau, and only then a wide receiver. The next three leading receivers were Chris Olave, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Rashid Shaheed, and none of the three played more than half the season. This underlines the team’s need for a reliable receiver.
The Saints are currently headed into the season with Olave, Shaheed, and Brandin Cooks as their top three receivers. Beyond that is a mix of receivers who have shown inconsistent hints of talent in the past (Cedrick Wilson, Donovan Peoples-Jones, Dante Pettis) or have relatively little experience (Bub Means, Kevin Austin, Mason Tipton, Chris Tyree, and Moochie Dixon). Adding Davis would give New Orleans another receiver in the frame of Wilson or Peoples-Jones but with more deep ball ability and more consistent results.
Rapoport points out that, with approximately $11.5MM still due to Davis from Jacksonville, the 26-year-old will likely command only a one-year deal from his new team. Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football goes a step further in saying that “Davis will almost certainly get” the league minimum.
If that holds true, and Davis does not, in fact, force a bidding war between the teams he’s visited and remained in contact with, then Davis’ decision will likely come down to team fit. If the Saints decide that they want to bring Davis into the fold, they’ll likely need to demonstrate how he fits in the offense and the locker room. Depending on how the visit goes, Davis could end up one step closer to his next NFL home.