Seahawks Meet With WR Kadarius Toney
No team claimed Kadarius Toney‘s contract following his Chiefs exit, sending the former first-round pick to free agency. Unattached for just more than a week now, Toney is on the workout/meeting circuit.
The Seahawks are the first team to give the 2021 draftee a look, with ESPN’s Field Yates indicating the wideout’s Seattle meeting took place Tuesday. Given the talent Toney has flashed at points during an inconsistent career, it is unsurprising he is drawing interest.
Of course, Toney has undercut his occasionally electric displays with unreliability. The Chiefs had hoped to groom him as a No. 1-level wide receiver in 2023, having traded third- and sixth-round picks for the Florida alum before the 2022 deadline. While Toney made important contributions in Super Bowl LVII by reeling off the longest punt return in Super Bowl history and scoring a touchdown on a poorly defended goal-line play, he finished last season with just 27 receptions for 169 yards and one touchdown.
Toney, who infamously committed an offside infraction to negate his would-be go-ahead TD against the Bills, underwhelmed to the point the Chiefs’ passing attack performed better with the shifty WR off the field. Kansas City finished last season with Toney and Skyy Moore out of the mix. Toney took issue with his deactivations, with a memorable rant surfacing hours before the AFC championship game. The Chiefs made Toney a healthy scratch for Super Bowl LVIII.
Andy Reid said Toney remained in the team’s plans despite his criticism of management, and a running back experiment ensued at training camp. Kansas City, however, has not seen Rashee Rice incur a suspension yet and added old friend JuJu Smith-Schuster shortly after his Patriots release. The Chiefs kept seven wideouts, carrying Marquise Brown on their 53-man roster rather than stash the free agency addition on IR, but did not find room for Toney. The Chiefs brought Justyn Ross back on a practice squad deal but did not retain Toney.
Seattle has a clear-cut top three at receiver, carrying the Tyler Lockett–D.K. Metcalf tandem into a sixth season and having first-rounder Jaxon Smith-Njigba going into Year 2. UDFA Jake Bobo showed promise as a rookie as well, to the point the Seahawks waived 2021 second-round pick Dee Eskridge. Free agency addition Laviska Shenault and 2022 seventh-rounder Dareke Young round out Seattle’s receiving corps.
A practice squad opportunity may also present itself at some point for Toney, as it would surprise to see him remain in free agency for too long. Though, the injury-prone talent squandered an opportunity in Kansas City. His stock has dropped considerably as a result.
Chiefs Pursued Josh Jacobs In Free Agency; Giants Did Not Submit Offer
SEPTEMBER 3: Both Pompei and Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post have clarified that the Giants did not make an official offer to Jacobs. The team was one of many which was in on the veteran running back market, as evidenced by the Singletary deal. That update is notable given the financial details Jacobs mentioned, although expressions of interest and formal contract proposals are of course two different things. Jacobs’ Packers performance will remain a key storyline within the reshaped running back landscape in 2024.
AUGUST 29: Josh Jacobs‘ free agency featured several teams in on the former rushing champion. Half of the AFC West was interested, though that does not appear to include the Raiders.
After Jacobs said he did not meet with new Raiders GM Tom Telesco about re-signing, the sixth-year running back noted (via The Athletic’s Dan Pompei) he took the Packers’ four-year, $48MM offer back to his original team. The Raiders did not match, but Jacobs had said he would agree to stay for less than Green Bay’s offer if Las Vegas included incentives. Moving toward a setup with a much lower-cost backfield, the Raiders declined.
[RELATED: Offseason In Review: Green Bay Packers]
This effort came after a few teams reached out to Jacobs’ camp with interest. The Broncos, Cardinals, Giants and Texans were previously mentioned as suitors, with Pompei adding the Dolphins and Bears also expressed some degree of interest. But the former first-round pick said the Chiefs also expressed interest. Some old-school animosity, even regarding a rivalry that probably peaked in the 1960s and early ’70s, factored into Jacobs’ decision to not reciprocate that interest.
“They were trying to get me hard,” Jacobs said of the Chiefs. “But there was no way I was going there. I feel like once you are rivals with somebody, you have a genuine hate for them. I couldn’t see myself in that color. And besides, I never wanted to be the guy that joined the dominant team. I want to be the guy that beats the dominant team.”
It is unclear if the Chiefs made an offer on par with the Packers’, but Green Bay’s proposal included just $12.5MM guaranteed at signing. The Packers traditionally do not include second-year guarantees for non-quarterbacks, though they would owe Jacobs a $5.93MM roster bonus on Day 5 of the 2025 league year. It represents a decent bet Jacobs is a Packer for at least two seasons, though the Chiefs’ pursuit is interesting given the makeup of their RB room.
Kansas City has starter Isiah Pacheco at seventh-round money for two more seasons, and the team re-signed Clyde Edwards-Helaire for just one year and $1.7MM. Kansas City did host J.K. Dobbins before the Edwards-Helaire recommitment, but the oft-injured ex-Raven agreed to a low-cost Chargers deal to reunite with Greg Roman. Kansas City has not spent much on running backs during the Andy Reid era. Reid coached Jamaal Charles for four seasons and signed off on a 2014 extension, but that only guaranteed the elusive RB $8.3MM. Charles’ more notable extension came back in 2010 under Scott Pioli.
The team’s Jacobs interest is an interesting “what if?” regarding Pacheco’s status, but the hard-charging runner having gained 1,765 rushing yards in two seasons certainly represents great value from the seventh round. Edwards-Helaire, rookie UDFA Carson Steele and the recently added Samaje Perine join the starter as the AFC West power aims for a threepeat.
Additionally, Jacobs indicated (via Pompei) the Giants offered around $3-$4MM more than the Packers. Though, this account does not specify if that means $3-$4MM more per year, in total or in guarantees. The Giants guaranteed Devin Singletary $9.5MM on a three-year, $16.5MM deal. Jacobs has been a better player during his career, and he committed to the Packers around two hours before the ex-Bills draftee joined the Giants.
The Giants were also willing to guarantee Saquon Barkley around $22MM via their 2023 extension offer. Big Blue memorably balked at another Barkley deal, but they appear to have been willing to go beyond where they went for Singletary to add Jacobs, who balked at New York due to taxes, the media market and MetLife Stadium’s turf.
The Giants and Raiders both let their standout backs play out seasons on the franchise tag; Jacobs said his 2023 negotiations broke trust with the Las Vegas regime. This went far enough Jacobs revealed to Pompei he was willing to report in late November in order to collect an accrued season, but the then-Dave Ziegler-led Raiders front office became the rare team to provide a raise for a tagged player. Jacobs signed a one-year, $11.8MM tender — north of the $10.1MM number attached to Barkley and Tony Pollard.
Jacobs, 26, did end up stumping for Antonio Pierce, but he does not appear to have been especially high on the Ziegler-Josh McDaniels regime, indicating “trust was missing” regarding he and the team going into last season. These comments do, however, come after the Alabama alum had said the slate was clean after he signed his franchise tender.
The Raiders, who were believed to be interested in re-signing Jacobs (just not at the rate other teams went to), have given backup Zamir White their starting job, with primary 2023 Vikings starter Alexander Mattison set as the backup.
Offseason In Review: Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks had been able to keep their operation afloat following the Legion of Boom’s gradual splintering, with Russell Wilson making his best statistical Hall of Fame case between Seattle’s mid-2010s Super Bowl seasons and the 2021 campaign that brought an injury and early decline signs. While Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider did well to cash in on their star quarterback in 2022, the team has not turned those assets into a true contender yet. This ended up costing Carroll his job.
Carroll’s right-hand man for 14 years, Schneider now has the final say. He landed on Mike Macdonald, whose Ravens defense took a leap last season. The Seahawks have gone from the NFL’s oldest HC to its youngest. They will hope Macdonald and his staff can better maximize the resources poured into the team following the Wilson trade.
Coaching/front office:
- Moved on from HC Pete Carroll; hired Mike Macdonald as replacement
- Brought in Ryan Grubb as offensive coordinator, Aden Durde as DC
- Leslie Frazier joined team as senior defensive assistant;Jay Harbaugh named ST coordinator
- Hired ex-Rams assistant Jake Peetz as pass-game coordinator, Charles London as QBs coach
- Former LB Josh Bynes joined staff as defensive assistant
Carroll piloted the Seahawks to their highest peak — by far — in franchise history. It is difficult to make a strong case against the 2013 Seahawks being that decade’s best team and one of this century’s best squads. The Seahawks became the first team since the 1950s Browns — who obviously played in a much smaller NFL — to lead the league in scoring defense in four straight years. Carroll followed up his successful USC stay by guiding the Hawks to 10 playoff berths in 14 seasons, completing an NFL bounce-back effort after being a Jets one-and-done (1994) and being fired after three Patriots seasons.
Another case can be made the Seahawks were not the same team once they gave Wilson the first of his three extensions. The Seahawks made the playoffs five times from 2015-20. They won three wild-card games in that span, but they partially benefited from Blair Walsh‘s 27-yard missed field goal (2015) and Carson Wentz sustaining an early concussion (2019). The Lions team they topped in 2016 also ranked 27th in DVOA. This is not to say those Seahawk editions were not worthy playoff squads, but the franchise’s post-Super Bowl XLIX period saw regular check-ins as a second-tier contender. No conference championship appearances have followed since the infamous Marshawn Lynch “what if?”
Carroll also had to battle age (73 in September) and a new owner (Jody Allen) being in place from when he was hired. While Schneider stayed on and will control Seattle’s 53-man roster, the 15th-year GM will be on the clock if the Seahawks cannot mount a true charge in the near future. They again went in a defensive direction. After initial rumors connected ex-Carroll assistant Dan Quinn to the job, the three-year Cowboys DC was deemed to have been too close to the Carroll setup for team brass’ comfort. Macdonald, 36, became the pick — after a bidding war against the Commanders.
Washington ended up hiring Quinn, but he may well have been the organization’s third choice. The Commanders appeared to covet Lions OC Ben Johnson, and they then pivoted to Macdonald. After Johnson turned them down, the Commanders offered the job to Macdonald. The two-year Ravens DC also was viewed by some as Washington’s top choice. In competing with Washington, Seattle came in with the winning offer. The Commanders’ Macdonald pursuit led to the Seahawks offering a six-year contract. HC contracts are guaranteed, and while Dan Campbell and Dave Canales were two first-timers who received six-year deals during the 2020s (with Matt Rhule landing a seven-year accord), four- or five-year deals are standard NFL practice. Intent on landing their top choice, the Seahawks paid up.
Carroll had tried to keep the job, but a report also suggested he had made midseason comments about retirement. Carroll’s specialty, Seattle’s defense proved a letdown during the team’s second straight 9-8 season. Struggling in particular against the run, Carroll and Clint Hurtt‘s unit ranked 25th in scoring and 28th in DVOA. Enter Macdonald, who coaxed the Ravens to a No. 1 defensive ranking despite late-summer (Jadeveon Clowney) or in-season (Kyle Van Noy) additions in place as the team’s top edge rushers. Baltimore led the league in defensive DVOA, and the ex-Jim Harbaugh Michigan DC received an early chance at a top NFL job.
The Seahawks did not block contracted assistants from pursuing other gigs during the period between Carroll and Macdonald, and OC Shane Waldron joined the Bears. Waldron perhaps has not received sufficient credit for Geno Smith‘s stunning 2022 turnaround, with Canales — Seattle’s QBs coach in 2022 — seeing more praise. While Hurtt was not on the DC radar — he is back with Vic Fangio coaching the Eagles’ D-line — Waldron interviewed with multiple teams.
Seattle’s offense plummeted from ninth to 17th in scoring from 2022-23, with Smith taking a slight step back. Macdonald, whom the Giants blocked from interviewing Mike Kafka (also a Seahawks HC candidate), went off the board in an effort to shape his first offense.
No other teams were connected to Grubb, a career-long college assistant who only brings two years of Power 5 experience. Formerly Fresno State’s OC from 2019-21, Grubb played a central role in powering Washington to the 2023 CFP national title game. Michael Penix Jr. owes some of his elevated draft stock — after an injury-plagued Indiana tenure — to Grubb, whose offense produced Division I-FBS’ passing and receiving leaders (Penix, Rome Odunze). This combo boosted the Huskies to the brink of a national title, after the then-Pac-12 program had not played for one since 1991. Grubb, 48, had agreed to follow Kalen DeBoer to Alabama but ended up viewing this Seahawks offer as a better opportunity.
Schematic changes will be evident immediately in Seattle, and it will be interesting to see how Smith looks in Grubb’s offense. Macdonald kept the Ravens’ long-running 3-4 scheme in place but hired Durde, who had served as the Cowboys’ D-line coach under Quinn. Durde joined Macdonald as an in-demand candidate. The Falcons, Rams and Packers requested meetings, and the Cowboys interviewed him for their DC post — one that ended up going to Mike Zimmer — after the Commanders poached Joe Whitt. Macdonald also considered ex-Ravens coworker Zach Orr, but he received a Baltimore promotion.
Durde, who is English, coached the sport in London for nearly a decade before landing on Quinn’s Falcons staff. As Micah Parsons has shifted to a full-time pass rusher, Durde coached the star talent in a scheme that kept the All-Pro roving around formations. A former Macdonald Ravens mentor, Frazier is back after a 2023 sabbatical. The Bills employed the former Vikings HC as their defensive coordinator for six seasons, but Sean McDermott separated from his previous play-caller in 2023. Frazier’s presence figures to be important on a staff with a first-time HC and rookie DC.
Re-signings:
- Leonard Williams, DL. Three years, $64.15MM ($26.15MM guaranteed)
- Noah Fant, TE. Two years, $21MM ($11.49MM guaranteed)
- Artie Burns, CB. Practice squad
The Seahawks sent the Giants second- and fifth-round picks for Williams at the 2023 deadline. Hours after the Giants then sent second- and fifth-rounders for Brian Burns, the Seahawks did not let the asset they had acquired leave. Williams is back in the fold, representing a shift for a Seahawks team that continues to invest along the D-line after previously not devoting substantial resources — at least, not until the 2023 Dre’Mont Jones signing — to interior defensive linemen. Jones has since been working on the edge, even after spending five seasons as an interior rusher. Through that lens, the Seahawks have an inside-outside rush combo each on contracts north of $17MM per year.
After not quite living up to his No. 6 overall draft slot as a Jet, Williams has made a habit of timing his resurgences well. On the franchise tag in 2020, the USC product produced 11.5 sacks — far and away a career high — and commanded one of this era’s most player-friendly deals for a defender shortly after the March 2021 franchise tag application deadline (three years, $63MM, $45MM fully guaranteed). Williams did not come close to those 2020 numbers in 2021 or ’22, but upon being dealt to the Seahawks, he posted four sacks and 11 QB hits in 10 games.
Williams, 30, did not help a Seattle run defense that ranked 30th, but Macdonald will plug him into his defense. This could be a good sign for the 10th-year player, as Macdonald just coaxed a dominant season from Ravens DT Justin Madubuike. Williams has an extensive track record as a quality run defender, though his best work on that front came back in his Jets days.
Fant joined Williams in hitting the market. Early deals for Dalton Schultz and Hunter Henry helped the 2019 first-round pick, but his Seahawks usage did not create an extensive bidding war. Fant drew 93- and 90-target seasons during his final two Broncos years; after seeing 63 looks in his Seahawks debut, the Iowa product commanded a paltry 43 last season. After 670- and 673-yard showings in offenses with sub-average QB play in Denver, Fant has stalled out in Seattle. This contract, however, would appear to show the team agrees a production uptick should be expected.
The former No. 20 overall pick is the only player in Seahawks history to see his fifth-year option exercised, which is interesting due to his status as a Broncos draft choice. While Fant is unlikely to flirt with numbers ex-Iowa teammate T.J. Hockenson has put up as a pro, Grubb unlocking him could prove a gateway to a higher tier for Seattle’s offense.
Free agency additions:
- Rayshawn Jenkins, RB. Two years, $12MM ($6.26MM guaranteed)
- Jerome Baker, LB. One year, $7MM ($6.02MM guaranteed)
- George Fant, T. Two years, $9.1MM ($4.7MM guaranteed)
- Connor Williams, C. One year, $4MM ($2.98MM guaranteed)
- Pharaoh Brown, TE. One year, $3.2MM ($2.69MM guaranteed)
- Laviska Shenault, WR. One year, $1.29MM ($1.15MM guaranteed)
- Tyrel Dodson, LB. One year, $4.62MM ($1MM guaranteed)
- Laken Tomlinson, G. One year, $1.2MM ($500K guaranteed)
- Johnathan Hankins, DT. One year, $2.1MM ($300K guaranteed)
- K’Von Wallace, CB. One year, $1.5MM ($205K guaranteed)
AFC East fans will recognize several players in this year’s Seahawks starting lineup. Most of the main additions come from that division.
Last year’s Seahawks O-line underwhelmed in terms of performance and health, and the team’s 2024 offering is not off to a great start. Abraham Lucas is again set for an injury-driven absence. Offseason knee surgery, after the right tackle starter missed 11 games last season, led to a reserve/PUP list designation. The Seahawks will become the latest team to call on George Fant, who has begun to make a career of RT fill-in duty.
Fant, 32, never worked as a full-time Seahawks starter during his first stint. He still parlayed that tenure into a three-year, $27.3MM Jets deal. After being a three-year Jets starter, Fant subbed for the Texans by playing 874 RT snaps last year. Lucas’ injury history has become a concern, and the Seahawks did well to bring back their one-time basketball convert for key spot duty.
Seattle landed Williams at a discount, finishing a lengthy recruiting process after the seventh-year vet made a Ravens visit. If he plays to his Dolphins form, the team will need to prepare a big raise in order to keep the former second-rounder beyond 2024.
Cardinals OC Drew Petzing Expected To Draw 2025 HC Interest
The Cardinals finished 4-13 last season. While the showing in Jonathan Gannon‘s first season locked down the No. 4 spot in the draft, Arizona obviously has a long way to go in GM Monti Ossenfort‘s rebuild. But some more attention is coming the organization’s way ahead of this regime’s second season.
Particularly, many around the league are studying the work of the Cardinals’ offensive coordinator. The scheme Drew Petzing has implemented is drawing praise, and The Athletic’s Jeff Howe indicates a widespread belief exists the second-year coordinator will be summoned for HC interviews in 2025 (subscription required). With Gannon a defense-oriented coach, Petzing is going into his second season as an NFL play-caller.
[RELATED: Offseason In Review: Arizona Cardinals]
This would be a rare development for the Cardinals, who have not seen an OC land a top job since the Kurt Warner–Larry Fitzgerald combination powered Todd Haley to the Chiefs’ gig in 2009. (Before that, it had been since Rod Dowhower‘s 1985 Colts arrival.) The Cardinals will probably need to show significant improvement for Petzing to have a true opportunity to become a finalist for a position, but Ejiro Evero‘s recent rise — after being tied to 5-12 and 2-15 teams — does remind that clubs have been more willing to look for promising assistants on non-playoff teams.
Coming from a role as the Browns’ quarterbacks coach, Petzing helped Jacoby Brissett to a bounce-back season — during Deshaun Watson‘s 11-game suspension — and coached under or alongside Kevin Stefanski for nine years. Working with the Vikings’ wide receivers for most of the Adam Thielen–Stefon Diggs pairing’s duration, Petzing followed Stefanski to Cleveland and spent two years as the Browns’ tight ends coach. Stefanski moved him to QBs coach in 2022. While Petzing could not coax Watson to anything especially close to his Texans-level form, that appears to a bigger-picture issue involving the quarterback.
Petzing, 37, only coached Kyler Murray for eight games last season, doing so after late-summer acquisition Josh Dobbs and 2023 fifth-round pick Clayton Tune combined for nine starts as the Pro Bowler finished ACL rehab. Petzing’s offense ranked 24th in scoring and 19th in yards, with DVOA placing the unit 21st. Considering the Cards only had their starting QB for eight games, that is not exactly a discouraging finish.
After helping Trey McBride to an Arizona-years franchise tight end record, with 825 receiving yards, Petzing will have No. 4 overall pick Marvin Harrison Jr. at his disposal this season. A Cardinals ascent would appear to specifically boost their OC’s stock, as the NFL perpetually searches for up-and-coming offensive minds. Harrison elevating this unit, with Murray now nearly two years removed from his knee injury, could help determine if Petzing will be the rare Cardinals OC to jump onto the coaching carousel.
Seahawks Add Jaren Hall To Practice Squad
One of the Vikings’ four starting quarterbacks last season, Jaren Hall could not stick with Minnesota’s 53-man roster this year. The Vikings waived the 2023 fifth-rounder to make room for Brett Rypien last week.
As Rypien makes his way from Chicago to the Twin Cities, Hall will receive another opportunity. The Seahawks are bringing him in as their de facto third-stringer. The Seahawks are adding Hall to its practice squad, per the Seattle Times’ Bob Condotta. Seattle released wide receiver Easop Winston to make room.
[RELATED: Seahawks Not Discussing Geno Smith Extension]
Hall joined Kirk Cousins, Joshua Dobbs and Nick Mullens as Vikings QB starters during a rare four-QB1 season in NFL history. The BYU product completed 65% of his passes at an impressive 8.4 yards per attempt. Hall, however, suffered a concussion in his first start — leading to Dobbs’ quick post-trade debut — and was benched in his second start, a Week 17 loss to the Packers.
Hall had replaced a struggling Mullens ahead of Week 17 but did not get the call for the Vikes’ season finale. Minnesota still has Mullens on its 53-man roster, with the ex-San Francisco UDFA joining Rypien as Sam Darnold‘s backups. J.J. McCarthy is on IR. The Vikings are not carrying a practice squad passer.
Minnesota drafted Hall 164th overall, doing so after he threw 31 touchdown passes compared to six interceptions in his final BYU campaign. Hall succeeded Zach Wilson as the Cougars’ starter in 2021. The Seahawks showed pre-draft interest in the two-year college starter last year, per ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson.
The Seahawks will take over Hall’s development, stashing him behind Geno Smith and trade acquisition Sam Howell. Seattle had placed P.J. Walker in that role during training camp but cut the veteran backup/XFL 2.0 starter last week. Two years remain on Howell’s rookie contract, while Smith is also signed through the 2025 season. The Seahawks can elevate Hall to their 53-man roster up to three times, before they must use waivers to make him their emergency option — thanks to the NFLPA nixing an offseason rule change aimed at QB flexibility.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/2/24
Here are Monday’s practice squad additions and subtractions:
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: WR Praise Olatoke
Houston Texans
- Signed: DE Rashad Weaver
- Released: DE Malik Fisher
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: CB David Long
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: WR Dez Fitzpatrick
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: OL Blake Larson
New England Patriots
- Signed: LB Joe Giles-Harris, LB Yvandy Rigby
New York Giants
- Signed: TE/FB Jakob Johnson
- Released: WR Miles Boykin
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: DB Ayo Oyelola
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DE Sam Okuayinonu, LB DaShaun White
- Released: T Sebastian Gutierrez
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: S Kendell Brooks
Weaver has dropped from the player who logged 640 defensive snaps in 2022, when Harold Landry was sidelined for the year, to the practice squad level. The Titans waived Weaver after setting their initial 53-man roster. He will follow ex-teammate Teair Tart by joining the Texans’ D-line upon being a Titans cut. Though, Tart landed in Houston via waiver claim and never dropped to the P-squad. Weaver registered 5.5 sacks in 2022 but did not record any in 15 games last season.
The Giants waived Long last week. He will join a Colts team that has made multiple moves at corner since setting its initial roster. Indianapolis, which took some heat for not augmenting its outside CB situation this offseason, claimed Samuel Womack off waivers from San Francisco and waived Darrell Baker. Long, a former Rams third-round pick, played for three teams (Raiders, Panthers, Packers in 2023.
Chiefs Notes: Suamataia, Perine, Humphrey
Kingsley Suamataia represents the only new piece along the Chiefs’ offensive line this season. The second-round rookie beat out Wanya Morris for the team’s left tackle job, the Kansas City Star’s Jesse Newell notes. The Chiefs had brought in the BYU product for a “30” visit and traded up (via the 49ers) one spot for the rookie blocker in Round 2. The agile prospect will succeed Donovan Smith, who remains a free agent. Kansas City needed to adjust at left tackle after seeing Orlando Brown Jr. reject its extension offer at the July 2022 franchise tag deadline. Although that caused some frustration among Chiefs brass, the team got by with Smith (with Morris as his backup) in 2023. The team now has Suamataia signed through the 2027 season.
Here is the latest out of Kansas City:
- Andy Reid has apparently shown notable hesitancy about adjusting to his current area code, as Samaje Perine confirmed the 12th-year Chiefs HC called him from a phone still tied to the Philadelphia region. The veteran running back said (via ESPN.com’s Adam Teicher) he heard directly from Reid when making his decision about where to sign. This reminds of Reid’s pitches to J.J. Smith-Schuster and Drue Tranquill, both of whom having now signed two Chiefs contracts. Kansas City added Perine shortly before placing Clyde Edwards-Helaire on the reserve/NFI list. The veteran, who served as the Broncos’ top passing-down back in 2023 before being cut last week, joins rookie UDFA Carson Steele as the Chiefs’ active-roster RBs behind starter Isiah Pacheco.
- The Chiefs have not seen a player seize their No. 2 cornerback job, and they looked to the waiver wire for some depth. The two-time defending champions submitted unsuccessful claims on corners Samuel Womack and Shemar Bartholomew, according to ESPN.com’s Field Yates. Waived by the 49ers, Womack ended up with the Colts. Bartholomew did not make it past the No. 1 spot on the wire; the Panthers made the rookie UDFA one of their six claims Wednesday. Kansas City will start Trent McDuffie, preparing to use him outside and in the slot once again, but has not landed on a full-time L’Jarius Sneed replacement. McDuffie 2022 draft classmates Joshua Williams and Jaylen Watson saw the most time last year, and the team kept yet another 2022 draftee — seventh-rounder Nazeeh Johnson — on the roster as well. Reid said recently the team may use a rotational setup into the season.
- Creed Humphrey reset the center market recently, agreeing to a four-year, $72MM extension. Of the fourth-year center’s $50MM guarantee number, OverTheCap indicates $35MM is guaranteed at signing. The Chiefs fully guaranteed Humphrey’s 2024 and ’25 base salaries and locked in $8.9MM of his 2026 base ($14.3MM) at signing. If/when Humphrey is on Kansas City’s roster on Day 3 of the 2025 league year, the remainder of his 2026 base locks in. That rolling guarantee structure is in place for Humphrey’s 2027 pay as well, with $10MM of his $17.2MM ’27 base salary becoming guaranteed on Day 3 of the ’27 league year. In terms of AAV, Humphrey’s $18MM number leads the center market by more than $4MM.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/2/24
Here are Labor Day’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: TE Sage Surratt
Buffalo Bills
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: CB Dee Delaney
Carolina Panthers
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: LB Tae Davis, OL Badara Traore
Dallas Cowboys
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: WR David Durden
Las Vegas Raiders
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: OL Corey Luciano
Miami Dolphins
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: RB Chris Brooks
Minnesota Vikings
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: TE Trey Knox
New Orleans Saints
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: TE Kevin Rader
San Francisco 49ers
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: DB Tayler Hawkins
Washington Commanders
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: C Ricky Stromberg
Stromberg sustained a knee injury that will require surgery. The 2023 third-round pick, one of five 2023 draftees that did not make Washington’s 53-man roster last week, will only need an arthroscopic procedure, per ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler. Stromberg is aiming to catch on somewhere else around the midseason point. He only played 26 rookie-year snaps on offense. The Arkansas product would technically have a chance to land back with the Commanders, depending on the terms of the settlement, but the team moving on so early may well point to the Adam Peters regime deeming the Ron Rivera– and Martin Mayhew-overseen move a mistake.
Davis figures to land elsewhere and play this season. The 28-year-old linebacker sustained a foot sprain and will be out for a few weeks, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero. Davis played in 16 games, split evenly between the Saints and Panthers, last season.
49ers WR Ricky Pearsall Released From Hospital
Not long after Ricky Pearsall was upgraded from serious but stable condition to fair condition, more good news has emerged regarding the 49ers rookie wide receiver. He has been released from the hospital Sunday afternoon, The Athletic’s Matt Barrows reports.
Pearsall was shot during an attempted robbery on Saturday. Per Erin Pearsall, Ricky’s mother, the bullet entered his chest and exited through his back without hitting any vital organs. She added that her son is in good spirits. The first-round pick will continue recuperating away from the hospital.
A statement from the San Francisco Police Department indicated Pearsall, 23, was shot in the chest while on his way to a signing event. The shooting took place in San Francisco’s Union Square. A struggle for the gun took place, and both he and the suspect, a 17-year-old male, were shot. A discharge occurring so soon after the shooting represents great news for Pearsall, all things considered.
The former Florida and Arizona State wideout had been expected to play a key role on this year’s 49ers team, but that is certainly on hold while the prospect recovers. The 49ers are well positioned at wideout this year, though their wait on Pearsall’s on-field development is obviously not the main focus right now.
It is too soon to speculate on when Pearsall will be able to resume his playing career. The 49ers drafted him on the same day in which Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel trade talks occurred. Those discussions continued to Day 2 of the draft, but John Lynch closed the book on them post-draft. Pearsall’s development stands to loom as a factor for Samuel’s long-term San Francisco status, but Aiyuk is now signed to a four-year extension and the oldest of the team’s WR starters is also signed for two more years.
Pearsall began 49ers training camp on the team’s active/NFI list due to a hamstring injury, doing so after he had participated in offseason workouts in a limited capacity. The former Aiyuk college teammate had then sustained a partially dislocated shoulder that kept him out for weeks. His recent experience certainly minimizes those minor maladies, and the 49ers will begin their season without the rookie, whose recovery will become a central storyline for the defending NFC champions.
Offseason In Review: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Replacing the player most consider the greatest quarterback in NFL history, the Buccaneers also entered last season with more than $70MM in dead money — much if from Tom Brady‘s retirement — on their payroll. After the team defended its NFC South title and saw Baker Mayfield pilot a late-season charge, GM Jason Licht signed off on largely running it back in 2024.
While OC Dave Canales departed, Mayfield joined some Super Bowl-era cornerstones in recommitting to the Bucs. This effort, which included two record-setting extensions, will test how well the Bucs have built their roster. The team still plays in what again looks like the NFL’s worst division. It would surprise if this mass retention effort did not keep the Bucs a threat for a fourth straight home wild-card game.
Extensions and restructures:
- Agreed to five-year, $140.63MM extension ($52.24MM guaranteed) with LT Tristan Wirfs
- Reached four-year, $84.1MM extension ($45MM guaranteed) with S Antoine Winfield Jr.
- Restructured WR Mike Evans‘ new contract, creating $17.4MM in cap space
With the exception of the Bengals’ rental plans involving Tee Higgins, teams operated intently with their franchise- or transition-tagged players. While the Patriots used the transition tag on Kyle Dugger, the Bucs ensured Winfield could not test the market by slapping the franchise tag on the All-Pro. This turned out to be a significant offseason for the team’s breakthrough 2020 draft class, with pillars Winfield and Wirfs being locked down long term. Months before Wirfs’ payday, Winfield came in with a deal that tops all safeties and proved to outpace all cornerbacks as well.
The safety market featured interesting twists this year. A host of veteran safeties — Justin Simmons and Quandre Diggs among them — became cap casualties. Many others settled for middle-class money as unrestricted free agents. As a market correction appeared in the works, the Packers gave Xavier McKinney a top-four safety deal. This brought good news for Winfield, who is a more accomplished safety. McKinney’s Green Bay deal reminded teams were still willing to pay up for the top young players at the position, and rumblings about Winfield requiring a record-setting extension surfaced soon after.
A 2020 second-round pick, Winfield became an immediate starter and helped the Bucs stonewall a historically explosive Chiefs offense in Super Bowl LV. The Bucs had expressed interest in extending the second-generation NFL DB in 2023, but Winfield ended up benefiting from the team waiting. He delivered a first-team All-Pro showing, complete with three interceptions, six sacks and an NFL-high six forced fumbles. The sixth of those strips denied DJ Chark at the goal line in a narrow Bucs Week 18 win over the Panthers, leading to a division title. Despite Mayfield and Mike Evans‘ free agencies, Winfield always loomed as Tampa Bay’s clear tag candidate.
This pact checks in more than $2MM north of Derwin James‘ previous safety high-water mark, in terms of AAV, with the $21.03MM-per-year number also coming in higher than Jaire Alexander‘s CB record. In terms of guarantees at signing, Winfield’s $45MM separates him by $7MM from the safety pack. The threat of the Bucs tagging Winfield again in 2025 contributed to the team needing to go here to extend its top DB. Not hailed on the same level as Jamal Adams‘ 2021 extension that provided a gap between the then-Seahawks safety and the field, Winfield’s deal quietly accomplished this as well.
Going into free agency, Licht did not classify a 2024 Wirfs deal as a priority. After Tampa Bay checked its other top contract matters off the list, Wirfs made sure it became one. A spring report suggested the sides were far apart.
The Bucs had developed an atypical habit of waiting until after key players’ contracts expired to pay them. They did this with Shaq Barrett in 2021, Carlton Davis in 2022 and Jamel Dean last year. This trend continued in 2024, with Evans and Mayfield on the cusp of free agency before re-signing. Winfield also needed to be tagged, upon playing out his rookie deal. Wirfs staged a hold-in to force the team’s hand, and the Bucs deviated from their usual timeline.
The Bucs saw the tackle market move before acting on Wirfs. While this may have cost the team a bit, this extension was actually early compared to when the team normally does business. Penei Sewell became the rare right tackle to reset the market for all tackles, scoring a $28MM-per-year Lions extension and the Vikings then gave Christian Darrisaw a deal that topped the LT market — at $26MM per.
Wirfs, 25, is more accomplished than both, being a three-time Pro Bowler — at two different positions — and collecting first- and second-team All-Pro honors. Also helping Tampa Bay during its Brady years, Wirfs made a successful transition to the left side in 2023. Of the four tackles chosen in the top 13 picks in 2020, Wirfs — selected 13th overall — has been the best to date.
The Iowa product’s deal reflects this. The Bucs gave the fifth-year blocker $11MM more in guarantees ($88.2MM) than any other tackle. Tampa Bay did convince Wirfs to sign a five-year deal, but the contract does not tie Wirfs to his team for as long as Andrew Thomas‘ Giants pact does. Wirfs signed effectively a six-year commitment, whereas the Giants’ No. 4 overall pick in 2020 — who agreed to terms after his third season — gave his team seven years of control. Wirfs’ resolution matches the Lions’ Sewell term length, with the NFC North champs doing a deal following their RT’s third season.
With teams making significant updates to the tackle market this offseason, the NFL’s first $30MM-per-year tackle is likely coming soon.
Re-signings:
- Baker Mayfield, QB. Three years, $100MM ($40MM guaranteed)
- Mike Evans, WR. Two years, $41MM ($29MM guaranteed)
- Lavonte David, LB. One year, $8.5MM ($8.5MM guaranteed)
- Chase McLaughlin, K. Three years, $12.3MM ($5MM guaranteed)
- Greg Gaines, DT. One year, $3.5MM ($3MM guaranteed)
- William Gholston, DL. One year, $1.38MM ($985K guaranteed)
Value swings have defined Mayfield’s career. He went from an impressive rookie year that dragged the Browns out of the worst period in franchise history to enduring a major regression under overmatched HC Freddie Kitchens. The 2018 No. 1 overall pick then bounced back under Kevin Stefanski, giving the Browns their first playoff win since the franchise reboot. After Mayfield extension rumors did not produce serious negotiations in 2021, an early-season shoulder injury harpooned his value. The Browns then made their controversial (and financially damaging) Deshaun Watson trade, and Mayfield did not improve in Carolina, turning in his worst NFL season. That led to the Bucs nabbing him for $4MM; the sides’ second negotiation proved more complicated.
Mayfield needed to beat out Kyle Trask for the starting job, and Tampa Bay started 4-7. But the veteran showed flashes during the season’s first half and then piloted the team to a division-winning finish — likely saving Todd Bowles‘ job — and a wild-card romp over an Eagles team in crisis.
Mayfield, 29, had produced a better QBR with Stefanski, and his 54.3 number last year actually came in under his much-maligned 2019 season’s output (54.4). Mayfield ranked 18th in the metric in 2023. Under Canales, though, Mayfield finished with a career-high 28 TD passes (compared to 10 INTs). Following a 337-yard, three-TD showing against the Eagles, Mayfield held his own in Detroit in the divisional round (349/3, with two INTs) to better position himself for a higher-end 2024 contract.
The 2017 Heisman winner had said he wanted to stay with the Bucs, but they will have a harder time building around a $33.3MM-per-year contract than they did in 2023. That said, Brady’s $35.1MM dead money bill brought far more in combined QB cap allocations compared to where Mayfield’s money is this year ($6.9MM). Even after the current passer’s cap number spikes to $35.78MM in 2025, the ’23 Bucs still carried more in combined quarterback money on the payroll. With eight QBs now over $50MM per year and Dak Prescott set to become No. 9 soon or in 2025, Mayfield in this middle-class price range is not as player-friendly as the massive raise would suggest.
The sides completed a deal before free agency, and while loose Falcons and Patriots connections emerged, Mayfield never seemed close to leaving the team that revitalized his career. Barring an 11th-hour Prescott extension, Mayfield will enter the season as the NFL’s 19th-highest-paid quarterback. The seventh-year passer will see $10MM added to his guarantee total on Day 5 of the 2025 league year. It would cost the Bucs more than $26MM in dead money to bail before that date, giving the QB some security — though, not full-fledged assurances he will be back in 2025 — if another regression occurs.
Discussions about the second-best wide receiver in Bucs history — for the handful of folks who have drifted far enough off path to address this matter — probably center on Chris Godwin, Kevin House, Mark Carrier or Vincent Jackson. The gap between this tier and Evans is rather wide.
Making a Frank Gore-like Hall of Fame case based on consistency, Evans leads the Bucs in receiving by nearly 5,000 yards. The 10-time 1,000-yard receiver has been a modicum of consistency, providing high production baselines for Brady, Jameis Winston and Mayfield during his career. Evans does not have a first-team All-Pro honor on his resume (two second-team nods) and has surpassed 1,300 yards in a season just twice (2016, 2018), but he has been durable and did enough in 2023 to convince the Bucs to re-sign him — after a separation appeared in play.
Going public with frustration about his situation last August, Evans had confirmed the Bucs had not made an offer as the 2023 season neared. The decorated WR had seen the position’s market boom, while he remained tied to a $16.5MM-per-year deal he agreed to in 2018. That contract had plummeted toward the position’s middle class, with Godwin even surpassing it on his current $20MM-AAV accord. Evans matched the NFL lead in receiving TDs (13) last season, as the Bucs shut down trade inquiries. Rumblings about another Bucs deal surfaced, and the sides came together without the 2014 first-rounder reaching free agency.
Evans, 31, had aimed to test the market and later said he would have considered the Chiefs or Texans if a viable Tampa Bay offer did not emerge. Instead, the Bucs gave their dependable pass catcher a frontloaded contract. In addition to the $29MM guaranteed at signing, another $6MM will come Evans’ way if he is on the Bucs’ roster on Day 5 of the 2025 league year. Barring a trade, he almost certainly will be. Regardless, Evans will almost definitely see all $41MM on this deal.
This is David’s fifth Bucs contract. As he continues to anchor the team’s second level, David ended up nearly doubling his 2023 contract (one year, $4.5MM) ahead of his age-34 season. The former second-round pick’s 134 tackles last season were his most since 2015 — his most recent Pro Bowl season, though the Bucs’ time in a 4-3 defense during the LB’s prime hurt his Pro Bowl count — and Pro Football Focus rated David as a top-25 off-ball ‘backer for the seventh straight year.
A one-team player, David had said it was Bucs or retirement this offseason. The Bucs will continue to lean on David, who trails only Ronde Barber and Derrick Brooks for Tampa Bay service time by a defender.
This is also Gholston’s fifth Bucs contract, as Licht’s retention approach did not only include higher-end contracts. Gholston has started 88 Bucs games, playing in 169. It is rare in today’s NFL when a 12th-year player is not his team’s longest-tenured defender, but David still holds that distinction. These two are the only remaining links to Bowles’ Super Bowl LV front seven. Gholston, 33, saw his playing time drop considerably in 2023; he played a career-low 244 defensive snaps. The Bucs still kept the veteran D-lineman around as a backup, with two recent early-round picks — starters Calijah Kancey, Logan Hall — to mentor.
Free agency additions:
- Jordan Whitehead, S. Two years, $9MM ($4.5MM guaranteed)
- Ben Bredeson, G. One year, $3MM ($1.75MM guaranteed)
- Chase Edmonds, RB. One year, $1.5MM ($1MM guaranteed)
- Tavierre Thomas, CB. One year, $1.5MM ($750K guaranteed)
- Sua Opeta, G. One year, $1.38MM ($650K guaranteed)
- Justin Skule, T. One year, $1.29MM ($600K guaranteed)
- Sterling Shepard, WR. Practice squad
Licht had bemoaned his decision to let Whitehead walk as a free agent in 2022, but the team did not operate with a full-on retention strategy the way it had in 2021. Whitehead, who started 55 games with the Bucs from 2018-21, played out a two-year, $14MM Jets deal. The Jets wanted to re-sign Whitehead but did not deem that a high priority. Whitehead is back in place as a safety starter, set to work alongside Winfield. From 2018-20, the Bucs used six second-, third- or fourth-round picks on DBs. Three remain with the team, as Dean continues on his 2023 re-up. Despite going into his seventh season, Whitehead is just 27.
