‘Several’ Teams Contact Rams On Matthew Stafford; QB Targeting Raise?
A popular talking point ahead of free agency has centered around this year’s quarterback options — both in terms of veteran FAs and the rookie crop — not being overly impressive. If the Vikings use the franchise tag to keep Sam Darnold off the market, the top prize would be off the board. In that scenario, monitoring the Rams may become necessary. Teams are already closely watching this situation.
Matthew Stafford‘s name has come up as a potential trade candidate for a bit, and Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reports several teams have indeed called the Rams on the veteran passer. The Rams did shop Stafford when he was coming off a multi-injury 2022 but have since seen him reestablish form as a top-10 QB, helping the team to back-to-back playoff berths.
GM Les Snead did not exactly slam the door on Stafford being moved, but Schultz indicates Sean McVay and others inside the organization want the QB retained. The Rams need to identify a post-Stafford answer at some point, but with Aaron Donald retired and Cooper Kupp appearing set to be traded, this remains a Stafford-centered franchise. This creates some leverage for the talented quarterback, who remains tied to a team-friendly contract.
Stafford is indeed seeking a pay raise that would place him closer to the top 10 earners at the position, according to Schultz. This would be an interesting component for Los Angeles, which thus far has only been linked to another restructure. A Stafford push for better guarantees last year did not yield a major win for the QB, who saw the Rams move $5MM from future years into 2024 and had them insert a $4MM 2025 roster bonus as part of that agreement. Even at the time of signing the four-year, $160MM deal, Stafford left money on the table to help the Rams build around him. With the pillars from that point gone or leaving, the NFL’s current 15th-highest-paid player may be angling for a final payday.
When Stafford signed his Rams extension in April 2022, the $50MM-per-year club consisted of only Aaron Rodgers‘ complex Packers contract, one the team traded a year in. There are now nine $50MM-AAV passers, including a few who have not displayed Stafford-level form to date. QBR slotted Stafford sixth in 2023 and 12th in 2024, with both years featuring Kupp injuries; 2024 also brought an extended period without Kupp and Puka Nacua, which nearly submarined the Rams’ season. Stafford helped the team revive it, going from 1-4 to a narrow divisional-round loss to the eventual champion Eagles.
The Rams have not seen Stetson Bennett become a legitimate successor option, and backup Jimmy Garoppolo is a free agent-to-be. This does not seem like the ideal draft for the Rams to address their post-Stafford future; then again, Stafford (when healthy) has proven talented enough he will keep the team away from the early draft slots that would bring franchise-level QBs. This represents an interesting offseason for the four-year Rams starter to strike, if indeed he is intent on securing a new deal. His current pact runs through 2026.
If the Rams do reverse course and give serious consideration to moving on now, Schultz adds a package that includes a first-round pick would be sought. The Rams needed to trade two first-round picks and a third to move Jared Goff‘s contract in the 2021 Stafford swap, and thanks in part to the 2024 restructure, trading Stafford before June 1 would bring a significant dead money charge ($45.33MM). That would check in behind only Russell Wilson and Rodgers’ upcoming Jets hit for largest in NFL history.
Having quickly reformed as a contender following a woeful Super Bowl title-defense season, the Rams would certainly be poised — McVay’s gifts notwithstanding — to take a step back if they traded Stafford. A deal in which another QB comes back would be interesting, and needy teams certainly exist here. Though, a team parting with a starter-caliber quarterback (and a first-round pick) to acquire a soon-to-be 37-year-old with a notable recent injury history would be a tougher scenario to envision. The Combine will provide a better gauge of what Stafford would bring back in a trade.
It is possible this is resolved with the contract adjustment Stafford seeks, though he has not shown an indication he would use a trade request as leverage in a negotiation. The Rams are projected to hold more than $44MM in cap space, which is a mid-pack number. A Kupp trade will bring back a few million more, as the Rams are prepared to take on some salary to facilitate a move. Kupp’s status aside, the lingering Stafford matter — particularly given this year’s available QBs — will be the most significant piece of the Rams’ offseason.
Ian Cunningham Jaguars GM Frontrunner?
The 2025 GM carousel has spun for several weeks, but the Jaguars have been doing the only work here for the past few. Nearly a month after firing Trent Baalke during their coaching search, the Jags are winding down their process.
As second interviews have begun, one name has jumped out. Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham looks to have emerged as the frontrunner for this role, with Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz going so far as to saw this is his job to lose. In noting the Jaguars hope to have this position filled this weekend, NFL.com’s Cameron Wolfe mentions Cunningham as a candidate to watch down the stretch here. This may not be too surprising, as his name surfaced shortly after this job became open. Cunningham’s second interview is likely to take place today, per Schultz.
This is familiar territory for Cunningham, who was the runner-up for the Commanders’ GM job that went to Adam Peters last year. Cunningham also is a two-time finalist for the Titans’ GM post, conducting second interviews with the team in 2023 and ’25. A 2023 report also indicated Ryan Poles‘ top lieutenant turned down the Cardinals’ GM job, one Monti Ossenfort took. Despite the Bears yet to make the playoffs during the Poles-Cunningham regime, the latter is well-regarded around the league.
The Bears did not directly include Cunningham in the search that produced Ben Johnson last month, as Poles mentioned his AGM would have been a part of the search committee had he not been in the running for the Tennessee job. The Titans hired the Chiefs’ Mike Borgonzi to work alongside Brian Callahan (and under football ops president Chad Brinker, effectively).
This Jags post would come with potentially more responsibilities, but Liam Coen is widely viewed as the top power broker in Jacksonville post-Baalke. Coen commanded enough Jags interest that the team fired Baalke after he had led the HC search, and the one-and-done Buccaneers OC is believed to have landed a Johnson-level contract from the AFC South club. Johnson is earning upper-crust coaching money, at $13MM per year. New executive VP Tony Boselli will have a role in the post-Baalke front office as well. While the Hall of Fame tackle is not believed to be above Coen or the GM, he will play a key part here in being set to report to ownership.
If the Bears lose Cunningham, a candidate to watch will be tight end-turned-exec Jeff King. The team’s senior director of player personnel would likely be the man to succeed Cunningham to work with Poles and Johnson, per the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs. A Ryan Pace hire, King has been with the Bears throughout his personnel career, which began in 2015. Via PFR’s General Manager Search Tracker, here is how their process stands now that it is in the finalist stage:
- Chad Alexander, assistant general manager (Chargers): Interviewed 2/13
- Brandon Brown, assistant general manager (Giants): Interviewed 2/13; strong contender?
- Trey Brown, senior personnel executive (Bengals): Interviewed 2/12
- Ian Cunningham, assistant general manager (Bears): To conduct second interview 2/19
- James Gladstone, scouting director (Rams): To conduct second interview
- Terrance Gray, vice president of player personnel (Bills): Interviewed 2/12
- Mike Greenberg, assistant general manager (Buccaneers): Declined interview
- Champ Kelly, assistant general manager (Raiders): Interviewed 2/14
- Jon Robinson, former general manager (Titans): One of top candidates?; Interviewed 2/13
- Jon-Eric Sullivan, vice president of player personnel (Packers): To conduct second interview
- Ethan Waugh, interim general manager (Jaguars): Strong candidate?; To interview
- Josh Williams, director of scouting and football operations (49ers): Conducted second interview 2/19
Patriots Release LB Sione Takitaki
Sione Takitaki will need to find a third team in three years. The Patriots announced Wednesday they have moved on from the 2024 free agency addition.
The former Browns draftee signed a two-year, $6.65MM deal with the Pats in 2024. Now, his release will expand the Patriots’ cap-space lead on the NFL. Cutting Takitaki will save the Patriots $2.68MM. Not that this team needed cap space, but it is now close to $130MM in available funds.
Seeing more playing time in Cleveland, Takitaki had rejoined Eliot Wolf in Foxborough. Wolf was still with the Browns when then-GM John Dorsey drafted Takitaki in the 2019 third round. Takitaki re-signed in Cleveland in 2023 but moved on last year, finding another short-term payday with the Patriots. His usage rate dropped, however, and checked in at 27% (194 snaps) on defense.
Takitaki, 29, saw an ACL tear end his initial Cleveland contract year in December 2022. While he was back on the field by Week 1 of the 2023 season, more injury issues intervened in New England. Takitaki began the season on the Pats’ reserve/PUP list, missing the first five games and then missing another contest in Week 7. A knee scope required the additional rehab time. Takitaki never gained a regular starting role, being a first-stringer in four games and clearing a 40% snap rate just twice last season.
New England, which saw its defense decline considerably after decades near the top of the league under Bill Belichick, has a host of issues to address in the offseason. The team has a historic amount of cap space, potentially more in light of Wednesday’s news the salary ceiling will check in around $280MM, but plenty of need areas. Ja’Whaun Bentley still leads the way at linebacker for the Pats, but he is coming off a season-ending injury. Jahlani Tavai led the Pats in LB snaps last season, logging 916. Tavai was among the many Wolf extension recipients last year, signing his new deal several weeks after Takitaki joined the team. Mike Vrabel can be expected to address his former position soon, however.
While Takitaki’s knee trouble provided a line of demarcation for him, he has earned more than $10MM during a six-year career. The Browns used the BYU alum as a 36-game starter from 2019-23. Takitaki notched a pick-six in 2020 and intercepted Ben Roethlisberger during the final stages of the Browns’ wild-card upset win in Pittsburgh. As a vested veteran, Takitaki passes straight to free agency.
No Chiefs Trey Smith Tag Expected; Guard-Record Deal Anticipated In Free Agency
The Chiefs’ issues blocking a dialed-in Eagles pass rush in Super Bowl LIX figure to work against them in free agency as well. Philadelphia’s dominant victory highlighted the importance of quality offensive linemen, and one of Kansas City’s three Pro Bowlers will be paid as such soon.
An expectation the Chiefs will lose their four-year right guard in free agency emerged soon after the Eagles’ conquest, but the AFC champions could prevent this by unholstering the franchise tag. Guard are almost never tagged, as the CBA groups interior O-linemen and tackles together, and Kansas City is not expected to make an exception here. No Smith franchise or transition tag is expected, The Athletic’s Nate Taylor notes (subscription required).
[RELATED: Bears Interested In Adding Smith?]
Although the 2025 salary cap has not produced a number yet, OverTheCap projects the O-line tag to come in beyond $25MM. That would be a tough ask for a Chiefs team, despite the luxury Patrick Mahomes‘ through-2031 contract has provided on the restructure front, projected to come in less than $1MM under the 2025 cap as of Wednesday. A $25MM-plus cap hold for a Smith tag would greatly hinder the Chiefs from improving.
Because of tackle salaries ballooning the tag numbers for other O-linemen, guards regularly score big in free agency. Teams’ reluctance to protect them via the tag has seen only two players (Brandon Scherff, Joe Thuney) be tagged at the position over the past 15 years. The Patriots’ 2020 Thuney tag proved a rental, as a 2021 Chiefs O-line overhaul soon included a then-record payment for the quality LG. One year remains on Thuney’s five-year, $80MM contract.
Smith departing in free agency would create a right guard need, but the Chiefs already carry a deficiency at left tackle. The highest-profile O-line spot will require immediate attention, as the Chiefs will surely slide Thuney back to LG after he served as a patchwork solution for a team that has struggled to staff its LT post since not re-tagging Orlando Brown Jr. in. While Wanya Morris and Kingsley Suamataia remain under contract, neither should be expected to head into the offseason program as the Chiefs’ projected LT starter. Thus, that will likely require a free agency addition. Fortunately for the Chiefs, a few options — Ronnie Stanley, Cam Robinson and Alaric Jackson — could soon be available. Though, a notable left tackle addition may cost the Chiefs a proven interior blocker.
Going into his age-26 season, Smith should be viewed as likely to reset the guard market, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes. Eagles LG Landon Dickerson moved that bar to $21MM per year in 2024, and this afternoon’s update on the salary cap — which is now set to land between $277.5MM and $281.5MM — will be welcome news for this year’s top free agents. Despite not accumulating the accolades Dickerson has, Smith — who made his first Pro Bowl this past season — will benefit based on position and teams’ interest in securing a high-end blocker without an injury history. The former sixth-round pick has missed one career game.
After the Chiefs gave Creed Humphrey a record-shattering center extension, they still expressed interest in a Smith deal. The team carried that interest into the regular season, and as recently as the midseason point, the Chicago Tribune’s Brad Biggs notes the expectation around the league was the Chiefs would find a way to keep Smith on a second contract. That sentiment has since shifted, pointing toward the Chiefs standing down and being resigned to losing the former Day 3 find.
Kansas City has three blockers (Humphrey, Thuney, Jawaan Taylor) signed to big-ticket contracts. While Taylor has been more problem than solution at right tackle, the penalty maven’s 2023 market produced a player-friendly deal that saw his 2025 salary ($19.5MM) become guaranteed in March 2024. The Chiefs may need to live with the disappointing free agent signing for one more season, as no cap relief would come via even a post-June 1 cut.
As the three-time reigning AFC champs determine a left tackle solution, their right guard is on the doorstep of a monumental payday. With the March 4 tag deadline not appearing to apply here, Kansas City has until March 10 to negotiate exclusively with Smith.
Lions’ Jameson Williams Avoids Suspension In Connection With 2024 Gun Incident
A gun incident involving Jameson Williams produced an internal police review in Detroit, but no charge ended up surfacing in connection with the fall development. That still left the blossoming wide receiver open to an NFL suspension, but he is in the clear there now as well.
Williams will not face NFL discipline here, per ESPN.com. The Lions wideout has already been suspended under the NFL’s gambling and PED policies, but he will not be kept off the field under the personal conduct umbrella.
A strange early-morning sequence October 8 involving Williams handcuffed led to the former first-round pick being released, only to see an investigation into the police department’s conduct take place. Officers placed Williams in cuffs and nearly booked him on a gun charge. Williams was to be taken to jail before being released from custody shortly prior to being booked. This incident occurred after midnight Oct. 8, 2024.
An officer’s suspected effort to have Williams evade an arrest due to his Lions status was part of the investigation, but an internal review cleared the Alabama alum of a concealed weapons charge. Months later, Williams will not see a fourth season interrupted. The former No. 12 overall pick already missed most of his rookie season due to injury and lost time due to the gambling ban in 2023. The above-referenced PED suspension cost Williams two games last season, but he broke through for a 1,000-yard slate anyway.
Williams and his brother were pulled over in Detroit, and the stop led to Williams — the passenger in the vehicle — admitting he was in possession of a gun without a concealed pistol license. Williams, 23, identified himself as a Lions player to police at the time of the early-morning arrest. A sergeant who arrived to back up the arresting officers soon made several calls to superiors asking if Williams needed to be arrested on the concealed weapon charge. (The sergeant’s cellphone wallpaper included a Lions logo.) The aforementioned internal review cleared this officer of wrongdoing, and Williams has now avoided a criminal charge and an NFL ban.
The Lions will have until shortly after the draft to pick up Williams’ fifth-year option. While Williams has not proven especially reliable, the rising team has shown patience with him through the spate of early-career issues. He finished with eight regular-season touchdowns, adding a ninth in the Lions’ shootout divisional-round loss to the Commanders. Williams is now extension-eligible as well, but the option could keep him on his rookie deal through 2026.
With Williams having only one season as a consistent receiving weapon on his resume and the team having Amon-Ra St. Brown on a $30MM-per-year deal, it would make sense if Detroit exercised the option and gave Williams a “prove it” year of sorts in 2025. That will be the next step on the talented wideout’s career timeline, as the Lions will presumably be curious to see if he can steer clear of any further off-field trouble now that this incident is in the rearview mirror.
2025 Salary Cap To Land Beyond $277MM
The latest salary cap projection arrived in December, hinting at a modest increase. As it turns out, that update undersold where the NFL’s 2025 salary ceiling will check in.
That projection pointed to the 2025 cap falling between $265-$275MM, but ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano indicates a boom beyond $280MM is now in play. The NFL has informed teams it will instead land between $277.5MM and $281.5MM. Anywhere in this range will mark at least a $22MM increase from 2024 ($255.4MM). Until Wednesday, teams had been operating on a prediction the cap would land between $272-$275MM, CBS Sports Jonathan Jones adds.
This greater-than-expected increase will not break the record 2024’s cap set, but it be a welcome sight after the rumor that had indicated a lesser jump would take place. Teams suddenly will have a few extra million to throw around in free agency and to allocate toward extensions. This will also mark a massive jump from where the cap was just four years ago.
The COVID-19 pandemic leading to fanless stadiums (in some cities) and heavily capped attendance (in others) in 2020 led to the 2021 cap dropping to $182.5MM. Four years later, the cap will have risen by nearly $100MM.
This continues a stream of growth, a trend that did not develop during the 2011 CBA, which featured stagnancy it its early years before roughly $10MM-per-year climbs as the decade progressed. A 2020 CBA that has included two additional playoff games, a 17th regular-season contest, new TV deals and increased gambling partnerships has seen cap spikes by more than $16MM each year since the pandemic-induced decrease of 2021 and by at least $20MM three times since then.
Last year’s record-setting jump ($30.6MM) could have featured a bigger spike, as the league’s memo (via The Athletic’s Dianna Russini) indicates a smoothing effort took place to produce a more gradual climb rather than have a near-$40MM bump in 2024 and a far lesser surge this year. Roughly $1MM of this year’s bump will also come via performance-based pay.
The 2024 increase brought new position-record contracts at many positions. Chris Jones eclipsed the salary ceiling Aaron Donald‘s then-outlier contract had set for defensive tackles, while Chiefs teammate Creed Humphrey is more than $4MM clear (AAV-wise) than any other center. The guard market saw Landon Dickerson check in with a new record ($21MM per year) just before the 2024 league year opened, while both Patrick Surtain and Jalen Ramsey agreed to deals that broke the cornerback record by a substantial margin. Christian McCaffrey later broke his own RB AAV record by securing a two-year, $38MM extension last summer, and the tackle market included Tristan Wirfs and Penei Sewell establishing new position records.
The two highest-profile positional spikes came at quarterback and wide receiver, respectively. The $30MM-AAV WR club expanded from one to six, with Justin Jefferson‘s $35MM-per-year contract the new standard. After the $50MM-per-year QB club added several new members, Dak Prescott used unique leverage to secure a $60MM-AAV extension hours before the Cowboys’ Week 1 game. While another quarterback topping that this year may be unlikely — barring true Bills-Josh Allen renegotiations transpiring — position records elsewhere (likely headlined by Ja’Marr Chase at receiver and a few edge rusher extension pursuits) are likely thanks in part to Wednesday’s news of better-than-expected cap growth.
Here is how the cap has looked over the past two CBAs:
- 2011: $120.4MM
- 2012: $120.6MM
- 2013: $123.6MM
- 2014: $133MM
- 2015: $143.3MM
- 2016: $155.3MM
- 2017: $167MM
- 2018: $177.2MM
- 2019: $188.2MM
- 2020: $198.2MM
- 2021: $182.5MM
- 2022: $208.2MM
- 2023: $224.8MM
- 2024: $255.4MM
Seahawks Add Justin Outten, Rick Dennison To Staff
FEBRUARY 18: In addition to the Outten hire, the expected move of bringing in Dennison is now official. The former will have the title of assistant offensive line coach in addition to his run-game specialist role, while the latter will work as Seattle’s run-game coordinator.
FEBRUARY 13: Two former offensive coordinators are joining Klint Kubiak in Seattle. The Seahawks are adding Justin Outten to their coaching staff, and Rick Dennison is believed to be joining him.
This will be a reunion among ex-Broncos, as Dennison coached with Gary Kubiak during both the latter’s Denver coaching stints (the latter of which involving Klint). Outten and Klint Kubiak were together on a rather memorable 2022 Broncos staff. Outten is coming aboard as a run-game specialist, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero.
[RELATED: Seahawks Hire Klint Kubiak As OC]
Dennison, who is following Klint from New Orleans (per the Seattle Times’ Bob Condotta), received Saints permission to interview with the Seahawks, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo add. Teams can block contracted assistants from leaving, but with the Saints changing coaching staffs, it is not too surprising they let Dennison explore other options.
Although coordinators regularly have leeway to bring in assistants, the Seahawks signing off in reuniting the two right-hand men on offense during Nathaniel Hackett‘s disastrous Broncos season is interesting. Both Kubiak and Outten called plays at points that season, with Hackett initially going around Outten to give play-calling duties — as the Broncos struggled mightily in Russell Wilson‘s debut — to his QBs coach. After the Broncos fired Hackett, Outten called plays during the team’s final two games.
A former Packers staffer, Outten spent the past two seasons on the Titans’ staff. He served as Tennessee’s running backs coach and run-game coordinator in 2023 and was retained under new HC Brian Callahan last season, when he coached tight ends. The Titans had planned to move on this offseason. It appears this Seattle role will be closer to his 2023 position, as the Seahawks look to generate more from their run game after Mike Macdonald expressed concern about it upon firing OC Ryan Grubb.
Dennison, 66, has spent much of his career working with the Kubiaks. A teammate of Gary’s in the 1980s and ’90s with the Broncos, Dennison coached on Mike Shanahan‘s staff alongside his former teammate from 1995-2005. Dennison stayed in Denver after Kubiak landed the Houston HC job in 2006, replacing his colleague as Broncos OC. Kubiak then hired him as Texans OC in 2010. Dennison coached with Gary Kubiak again in Baltimore and back in Denver, where he reprised his role as Broncos OC from 2015-16. While Denver’s Super Bowl-winning team is best remembered for its defense, Dennison was a key presence during the one-year Kubiak-Peyton Manning overlap.
Dennison worked with both Kubiaks in Minnesota and then rejoined Klint as part of the 2024 Saints’ staff, serving as a senior offensive assistant. Dennison has been an NFL staffer for 28 years. While the Seahawks have 30-somethings at HC and OC, they now have two 60-somethings (Dennison, Leslie Frazier) as key advisors.
Additionally, the Seahawks are adding Michael Byrne to their staff as an offensive assistant. Byrne is also following Klint Kubiak from New Orleans and also worked with the new Seattle OC at Texas A&M during the early 2010s. An analytics-geared staffer, Byrne also spent time with Pro Football Focus.
Vikings Unlikely To Let Sam Darnold Walk; ‘Significant’ Rehab Work Remains For J.J. McCarthy?
This year looks a bit light on franchise tag candidates, but the Vikings do have the most significant decision to make before the March 4 tag deadline.
Sam Darnold has come up as a player the team will consider tagging, despite his tough finish to his debut Minnesota season, and J.J. McCarthy‘s recovery timeline stands to factor into the Vikings’ decision. McCarthy has undergone two surgeries after suffering a meniscus tear in the preseason. While plenty of time remains between now and Week 1, last year’s No. 10 overall pick looks to have a ways to go in his recovery.
[RELATED: Byron Murphy Seeking Significant Raise In Free Agency]
McCarthy still has “significant” work to do in terms of rebuilding his body after the injury, according to the Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora, whose recent conversations with a number of NFL execs point to the NFC North team protecting itself before the tag deadline. The Vikings should not be expected to let Darnold hit free agency, La Canfora notes. This would take the top QB option off the market, but given the Vikes’ situation, it would be understandable if they sought high-priced insurance.
The Vikings have been in talks with Darnold, who would be eligible to speak with other teams beginning March 10 when the legal tampering period starts. Darnold’s best financial play would probably be hitting the market and signing with a starter-needy team, one that would be ready to authorize multiple guaranteed years on a contract that would be expected to top $30MM per annum. The Baker Mayfield price range came up for Darnold recently; Darnold’s ex-Panthers teammate re-signed with the Buccaneers for three years and $100MM just before free agency last year.
While Minnesota could take this route in an effort to avoid a $40MM-plus cap hold clogging its payroll due to a franchise tag, McCarthy’s presence represents a rather notable difference between this situation and the one Tampa Bay navigated in 2024. Darnold also could conceivably be leery of re-signing on a multiyear deal due to McCarthy’s presence. McCarthy’s rookie contract can run through 2028 via the fifth-year option, and while a report after Week 17 — a critical juncture on the Darnold Minnesota timeline, due to his struggles in the two games that followed — indicated teams would call the Vikes on McCarthy. No indications have emerged suggesting the Vikings would entertain trading a player around whom they centered their 2024 offseason.
If McCarthy does need to take major steps forward in terms of rehab and acclimating to the NFL, the Vikings keeping Darnold — after a breakthrough season that produced a 14-3 record, an original-ballot Pro Bowl nod and a Kevin O’Connell Coach of the Year honor — would make sense regardless of cost. Minnesota is projected to carry more than $58MM in cap space. While a Darnold tag would throw a wrench into the Vikings’ ability to retain free agents Byron Murphy, Camryn Bynum and Aaron Jones, prioritizing a quarterback would stand to supersede retaining starters elsewhere.
Though, the Vikings are coming off a season in which they saw a $10MM QB make a stunning leap. A second Darnold year also cuts into Minnesota’s ability to build around McCarthy’s rookie contract. O’Connell also elevated Kirk Cousins‘ play, and the team also worked with Daniel Jones for nearly two months to close the season. Jones would be a less expensive option, in the event the Vikings decide a Darnold franchise tag would be too pricey.
Of course, teams have the choice of two tags to use each year. The lesser-used transition tag would be an interesting play, as our Nikhil Mehta suggested earlier this month. The lower-cost tag has since come up around the NFL as a potential option, according to Outkick.com’s Armando Salguero.
Whereas OverTheCap projects the QB franchise tag to eclipse $41MM, it predicts the transition tag value to check in south of $36MM. That might not be enough of a difference to risk losing Darnold for no compensation, as the franchise tag still calls for two first-round picks to come back in the event of an unmatched offer sheet. But a transition tag also would give the Vikings five days to match any offer, effectively handcuffing the team that submitted the proposal at a time when key free agents will come off the board.
Darnold, 27, represents the top QB domino this year. The Vikings’ call during the tag window (Feb. 18-March 4) will determine if he is available. If a tag takes the seven-year vet out of the equation, teams would need to pivot. Jones, Cousins, Justin Fields, Russell Wilson and, if he intends to keep playing, Aaron Rodgers will be the other top veterans to monitor as bridge options (at worst) in a scenario in which Darnold stays in Minnesota.
Zack Baun Wants To Stay With Eagles; Milton Williams Addresses Free Agency
The inside linebacker market has stagnated a bit since Fred Warner and Shaquille Leonard‘s paydays in 2021. Only one player — Roquan Smith — has since eclipsed those deals, and the market saw two of its top AAVs (C.J. Mosley and Foyesade Oluokun) drop due to extensions that brought pay cuts last year.
This year’s free agency period is unlikely to feature any true threats to eclipse Smith, but one ILB transformed his market thanks to a 2024 breakthrough. Zack Baun went from a largely unproductive edge rusher — and a player who researched special-teamers’ deals as comps going into free agency last year — to a first-team All-Pro. Baun almost completed the inverse of the Haason Reddick emergence, as the former Eagle revitalized his career after being moved from ILB to an edge role.
[RELATED: Eagles Win Super Bowl LIX]
Baun finished the season with 151 tackles, five forced fumbles and 3.5 sacks. He added a regular-season INT and a pivotal Super Bowl LIX pick, which set up the Eagles deep in Chiefs territory ahead of a second-quarter touchdown. Baun’s breakout year will generate an interesting market, as he is 28 and has no prior history of consistent play. This could make some teams hesitant, but Baun certainly proved he fits in Vic Fangio‘s scheme. And he would like to continue developing in Philadelphia.
“I’m curious. I don’t know what it’ll look like, honestly,” Baun said of his second crack at free agency (via PHLY’s Zach Berman). “…Hopefully it’s here. I love this place. I appreciate what they’ve done for my career and my family — just everything. I got a lot of options to weigh.”
The Eagles have some important defensive pieces nearing the market. Josh Sweat is chief among them, with Milton Williams also out of contract. Mekhi Becton joins Baun in being interested in staying with the Eagles, who saw both bargain-bin 2024 FA signings raise their values in helping Philly to its second Super Bowl championship. While Becton plays a higher-valued position, Baun was one of the NFL’s best defenders last season, getting there on a $3.5MM contract. He will be looking for a significant raise soon.
Last year’s market saw two eight-figure-per-year free agent ILB contracts handed out. The Texans gave Azeez Al-Shaair a three-year, $34MM deal; the Steelers signed off on a three-year, $41MM Patrick Queen pact. These contracts respectively check fifth and seventh among off-ball LBs. Considering Baun is 28 and just put together a first-team All-Pro season to help a team to a championship, it would seem reasonable he could target that price range.
Philly is projected to hold more than $18MM in cap space, a mid-pack number three-plus weeks ahead of the 2025 league year. The team’s creative 2024 maneuvering on offense showed an ability to afford a number of pricey extensions, as void years and option bonuses flood Howie Roseman‘s payroll. If the Eagles lose Baun, they would have a glaring need at linebacker thanks to Nakobe Dean having suffered a patellar tendon tear in the wild-card round. The team has not devoted much in the way of funds to this position in recent years, but Dean’s latest injury provides a complication.
Williams mentioned (via Berman) a desire to stay in a winning situation. That is often not prioritized by players seeking second contracts, as this window represents a key opportunity to cash in. The Eagles also have both Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis signed for multiple additional seasons, should the team pick up Davis’ fifth-year option by May. Williams could be an odd man out, as the Eagles figure to be saving up to extend the Georgia alums down the line. This could certainly mean Williams’ best offers will come from other teams, and the four-year veteran did add he would want “a situation to as close as this as possible.”
More than two years younger than Baun, Williams will be 26 by Week 1 of next season. He finished his contract year with career-high marks in sacks (five) and QB hits (10). Pass rush win rate slotted the former third-round pick sixth among interior D-linemen, who added two sacks and a forced fumble in Super Bowl LIX. Like Sweat, Baun and Becton, Williams made some money this past season.
Elsewhere on the Super Bowl champions’ roster, Landon Dickerson is likely to undergo knee surgery (via the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane). The Pro Bowl guard left the NFC championship game with a left knee malady and played through it in the Super Bowl. The Eagles have the All-Pro guard signed to a position-record $21MM-per-year deal.
James Bradberry Suffered Achilles Tear, Aiming To Return To CB Role
A blend of new additions, one important reunion and holdovers from previous defenses helped the Eagles complete a turnaround in the secondary. This rejuvenated group, however, did not involve James Bradberry, who went through a complicated offseason before suffering an injury that kept him off the field throughout the year.
The Eagles kept Bradberry in the equation by waiting until after roster-cutdown day to place him on IR. That left the door open to the veteran DB returning, but Philadelphia never activated him. Bradberry did not practice with the team following training camp, and he shed some light on why following Super Bowl LIX.
The nine-year veteran said Thursday (via The Athletic’s Brooks Kubena) he had suffered an Achilles tear in training camp, and the summer setback also involved a soleus muscle tear. Despite this, Bradberry said (via 94WIP.com’s Eliot Shorr-Parks) he was ready to help during the season. He expects to be ready for OTAs. The Eagles did not have to disclose Bradberry’s injury, as he was not on the active roster all season.
Achilles tears regularly end seasons, but a few examples — involving Terrell Suggs, Michael Crabtree and Cam Akers — exist of players sustaining offseason tears before resurfacing for Super Bowl teams. Of that trio, only Akers suffered his tear during training camp. Akers returned to the Rams by Week 18 of the 2021 season but was not particularly effective. He still played in Super Bowl LVI. Bradberry will collect a Super Bowl LIX ring, but his Philly future is in doubt after this season-long absence.
Although the Eagles’ 2023 plan involving C.J. Gardner-Johnson featured reports of the team having him in their plans and then making an offer, the now-two-time Eagle DB said no offer came. It had appeared Gardner-Johnson was higher on the team’s priority list than Bradberry that year, but as CJGJ awaited a better offer from the Eagles or elsewhere, the team pivoted to re-signing Bradberry on a three-year, $38MM deal that included $20MM guaranteed at signing. The 31-year-old defender is under contract for 2025, but he has seen the team make major updates to the secondary, as first- and second-round picks Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean played integral roles in the Eagles’ Super Bowl LIX romp.
By training camp last year, the Eagles were trying Bradberry at safety. Bradberry, 31, suggested the move and said today (via Kubena) he made the safety call upon looking at the depth chart. However, he said today a switch back to CB will be preferred. The Eagles not only added the two highly drafted CBs but had Isaiah Rodgers in the fold after his gambling suspension ended. All three joined holdovers Darius Slay and Avonte Maddox in the team’s championship-winning formula. Rodgers and Maddox are due for free agency, while Slay is under contract through 2025.
Slay, 34, wants to play one more season — ideally with the Eagles — before retiring. The team has Mitchell and DeJean signed through 2027. While the two rookie contracts help, Philly has allocated considerable cash to its high-powered offense. As for Bradberry, his contract includes four void years — an Eagles staple — and is due a $1.26MM base salary this year. A $16.6MM option bonus due would point to the Eagles moving on, but the team would eat $10.8MM in dead money but cutting Bradberry. Slay is also due a $16.1MM option bonus, calling his Philly future into question.
The ex-Panthers and Giants No. 1 corner excelled in 2022 but took a step back in 2023, helping lead to the Eagles starting their draft with two corner picks. He will now be attempting to bounce back from a serious injury ahead of an age-32 season.