Offseason In Review: Chicago Bears
A quarterback-starved franchise for much of their existence, the Bears secured a rare opportunity to finally check that box off their to-do list. Last year’s trade with the Panthers brought about a move that may well not have occurred in a normal year. After building the 2023 offseason around Justin Fields, GM Ryan Poles cut bait on the run-oriented QB to prepare for a Caleb Williams-centered future.
The Bears have now secured a rare opportunity to reset their quarterback contract clock, moving on from a fourth-year passer to a rookie with a much higher ceiling. Williams now leads a Bears team that spent extensive time equipping its new passer with weaponry, setting up one of the most intriguing periods in this storied franchise’s history.
Extensions and restructures:
- Agreed to four-year, $110MM extension ($43.65MM guaranteed) with WR D.J. Moore
- Completed four-year, $76MM extension ($43.8MM guaranteed) with CB Jaylon Johnson
Poles acquired two new receiver regulars for Williams to target, but he also rewarded the one obtained in 2023. Moore stretched his run of 1,000-yard seasons to four — with four different primary starting QBs — and continued to do so with passers regarded well off the top tier at the position. Fields’ issues with accuracy aside, Moore smashed his career-high receiving mark from Carolina with a 1,364-yard Chicago debut. Moore also established a new career-best TD number (eight) and ranked in the top 15 in yards per route run (2.31). A Bears franchise that does not have many standout receiver seasons in its history enjoyed one during a mostly forgettable slate.
Moore, 27, said he did not shoot for a Justin Jefferson-level payday; the seventh-year player still did very well. Moore’s total guarantee number ($82.6MM) trails only Jefferson and A.J. Brown — as if we needed even more components impacting Brandon Aiyuk‘s endless 49ers negotiations — and the Bears structured this contract like a team that has a rookie QB deal around which to build. Moore’s cap number jumps from $7.2MM to $24.9MM from 2024-25, and this through-2029 contract — two seasons remained on his 2022 Panthers extension — does not include any void years.
The Bears guaranteed Moore’s 2024 and ’25 base salaries but have some flexibility beyond that. Moore’s age and production history should make this $27.5MM-per-year deal a win for the Bears, who secured four more seasons of control and would only be on the hook for prorated signing bonus money if they moved on post-2025. Seeing as Moore is a rare No. 1 wide receiver to stop through Chicago, any departure rumors can be tabled into the late 2020s. The Maryland alum’s deal will overlap with Williams and Rome Odunze‘s rookie contracts for at least three years.
More than four months earlier, the Bears reached a quick resolution with Johnson. They did so despite allowing Johnson’s camp to negotiate with other teams at the 2023 trade deadline. The Bears were not satisfied with any trade offers, wanting a first- or second-round pick for a player who had not shown All-Pro-level form from 2020-22. Interest from multiple teams ensued, but Poles soon affirmed he wanted Johnson in the fold long term.
The Bears and Chiefs snapped a notable drought of cornerback franchise tags; the Rams’ second Trumaine Johnson tag (2017) represented the most recent such move coming into this offseason. While the Chiefs tagged L’Jarius Sneed to fetch draft capital in a trade — as the NFL’s latest dynasty operates around one-contract CBs — the Bears had more room to pay their tagged cover man.
Poles has made his stamp on this defense, having now given high-end contracts to defenders on all three levels. The third-year GM paid Tremaine Edmunds and Montez Sweat last year and re-upped Johnson days before free agency. Johnson had expressed some frustration Sweat was paid first despite his midseason arrival and mentioned an aim at becoming the NFL’s highest-paid corner. The Bears did not give in there, but the former second-round pick — after a well-timed breakout — did well in terms of guarantees.
After subsequent deals for Sneed, Tyson Campbell and AJ Terrell, Johnson’s AAV sits 10th among corners. It is a bit unusual for a franchise-tagged player to settle for such placement, but Johnson secured $43.8MM fully guaranteed — fourth among corners — and $54MM guaranteed in total (seventh). This is also a clean contract, with no void years involved and the former second-round pick’s 2026 guarantee not vesting until that year. Johnson’s 2024 and ’25 base salaries are guaranteed; the fifth-year CB is due $44MM in that span. That is more than two tags would have covered, explaining how the Bears finalized this deal so quickly.
Pro Football Focus graded Johnson first overall among corners, and Pro-Football-Reference’s coverage metrics backed that up. After allowing passer ratings (as the closest defender) north of 94.0 from 2020-22, Johnson checked in with a 50.9 number last season — a four-INT slate that produced a second-team All-Pro honor. The Bears are confident this was not merely a contract-year outlier; they will count on Johnson to anchor their mid-2020s secondaries.
Trades:
- Acquired conditional 2025 sixth-round pick from Steelers in exchange for QB Justin Fields
- Sent Chargers No. 110 for WR Keenan Allen
- Landed DE Darrell Taylor from Seahawks for 2025 sixth-round pick
- Obtained OL Ryan Bates from Bills for No. 144
- Acquired DT Chris Williams, 2025 seventh-rounder from Browns for 2025 sixth
Although feigned debate surfaced about this decision, those in the league never seemed to be convinced the Bears strongly considered passing on Williams to keep Fields. The Bears wanted a Day 2 pick for their three-year starter, a player around whom they themed the 2023 trade (which moved them out of C.J. Stroud/Bryce Young territory), and the Falcons were floated as a possibility. The Fields market turned out to be ice cold. If now-starter Russell Wilson can hold off the younger passer and play 50% of the Steelers’ 2024 snaps, the Bears will only collect a 2025 sixth. Fields reaching the 51% play-time barrier would give Chicago Pittsburgh’s 2025 fourth.
Poles, of course, did not draft Fields. That would have made it borderline insane had the third-year GM passed on a second straight No. 1 overall pick. The Panthers throwing Young into a terrible spot became the Bears’ golden ticket, with Chicago benefiting from the lowest point in Carolina’s history.
Poles labeled Fields’ murky status exiting the season a unique situation, and the Bears were then tied to wanting a historic haul for the top pick. No real noise about Fields having a shot to stick in the Windy City emerged henceforth, and while the Bears may or may not have passed on other offers to do right by the former No. 11 pick, it is hard to believe they rejected a significantly superior proposal. The four other teams to discuss Fields with the Bears viewed him as a backup.
That said, Fields (23rd in 2023 QBR) would probably still be the Bears’ quarterback had Young elevated the Panthers out of the NFL basement. Though, the Bears landing the Nos. 2 or 3 picks via the Panthers may still have resulted in them dealing Fields and starting over with Jayden Daniels or Drake Maye. Fortunately for Poles, his decision proved easier. The Steelers passed on Fields’ fifth-year option, and the electric runner/sack-prone passer will not be extended in 2024. Fields looks to have a shot at sticking with the Steelers via a 2025 re-signing, but he will need to overtake Wilson and show growth.
One of this era’s premier route-running technicians, Allen joins the Bears ahead of his age-32 season. The Bears landed the 11-year Charger despite interest from the Texans and Jets emerging; those teams circled back to other vets, while Allen began a contract year in Chicago.
The new Bolts regime offered Allen an extension, but the receiver’s camp labeled the proposal a pay cut. Allen remains tied to the $20MM-per-year deal he signed in 2020, and while he is open to an extension, the Bears now have Moore and Odunze signed long term. Even with Williams on a rookie deal, the team paying Allen even midlevel money beyond 2024 would be somewhat difficult. After all, the team has also paid a running back (D’Andre Swift) and tight end (Cole Kmet).
Allen is a six-time Pro Bowler who has excelled in the slot and on the perimeter. A strong Bears season could vault the former third-rounder from the Hall of Very Good tier to a player with a viable Canton case. As it stands, Williams will have one of the game’s best separators — ESPN’s Open Score metric placed Allen first in 2023 — to target in Year 1. Allen showed scant decline signs last season, averaging a career-best 95.6 yards per game and surpassing 1,200 for just the second time in a season. He got there in 13 games. The Bears will hope to extract one more prime-level year from the aging talent.
Bates remains on the Bears-built contract from 2022, when the Bills matched an offer sheet early in Poles’ GM tenure. The Bills used Bates as a 2022 starter but demoted him to a full-time backup last season. Bates, 27, battled Coleman Shelton for the center job but has missed time due to an undisclosed injury. Bates looks like the Bears’ sixth man up front when he recovers.
Taylor flashed in Seattle, posting 9.5 sacks and forcing four fumbles in 2022. He also totaled at least 5.5 sacks in each of his three healthy seasons. The former second-rounder, due for unrestricted free agency in 2025, has a chance to boost his value as a Montez Sweat sidekick.
Free agency additions:
- D’Andre Swift, RB. Three years, $24MM ($14MM guaranteed)
- Kevin Byard, S. Two years, $15MM ($7.39MM guaranteed)
- Gerald Everett, TE. Two years, $12MM ($6.06MM guaranteed)
- Coleman Shelton, C. One year, $3MM ($1.75MM guaranteed)
- Jonathan Owens, S. Two years, $3.8MM ($1MM guaranteed)
- Jacob Martin, DE. One year, $1.29MM ($668K guaranteed)
- DeAndre Carter, WR. One year, $1.2MM ($450K guaranteed)
- Matt Pryor, OL. One year, $1.18MM ($50K guaranteed)
- Scott Daly, LS. Practice squad
The Bears joined the Eagles, Texans and others in entering the Saquon Barkley sweepstakes, and while Giants GM Joe Schoen indicated on Hard Knocks that Chicago had driven up the two-time Pro Bowler’s price, it looked to be a Philly negotiation that defined the running back market’s early hours. The Eagles were looking into re-signing Swift but saw his price point move past their comfort zone, and they pivoted to Barkley, whom Howie Roseman‘s team clearly viewed on a higher tier. Swift became the 2024 UFA market’s first commit, as the Bears continued to load up a roster around another rookie-scale QB contract.
Familiar with Swift from his Lions days, the Bears gave him the second-most money among UFA backs this year. Swift’s $14MM guarantee at signing outflanked Josh Jacobs, Derrick Henry, Devin Singletary and Aaron Jones. The ex-Detroit second-rounder’s age (25) and lighter workload by comparison to the other available backs undoubtedly boosted his stock. Swift will begin his Bears tenure with 788 career touches. Injuries were an issue for the Georgia alum in Detroit, which fetched barely a fourth-rounder in a 2023 trade.
Swift stayed healthy in Philly, booking a Pro Bowl nod after 1,049-yard rushing season. The former No. 35 overall pick also has two seasons (2020, ’22) in which he ranked in the top 10 among RBs in yards per catch, with the Lions using him as more of a dual threat compared to the Eagles. The Bears figure to take advantage of Swift’s multipurpose skillset, with the upper-middle-class RB contract pairing with Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson‘s rookie deals.
Byard joins Swift in coming from Philly, though the Eagles had cut the former All-Pro. Considering what happened on the safety market this offseason, Byard did well. As fellow cap casualties Quandre Diggs, Jamal Adams, Marcus Maye and Eddie Jackson all took one-year deals worth less than $4MM, Byard saw his guarantee approach where Justin Simmons‘ market went. The four-time All-Pro scored $7.5MM guaranteed from the Falcons. Byard, 31, has two first-team All-Pro distinctions on his resume (2017, 2021) and will provide a cheaper solution to Jackson’s Ryan Pace-authorized extension. Despite Byard’s involvement in the Eagles’ late-season collapse, Pro Football Focus rated him 22nd among safeties last year.
49ers Made Offer For Broncos WR Courtland Sutton
Brandon Aiyuk‘s 49ers drama is over; the long-running extension saga ended with a $30MM-per-year deal. But the Steelers loom as the second-place finishers. Pittsburgh not having a wide receiver to send to San Francisco hurt its chances, as the 49ers understandably wanted an immediate replacement.
A workaround formed for the 49ers during the trade chapter — which featured framework with the Steelers — of this offseason-overshadowing Aiyuk drama. The defending NFC champions offered the Broncos a third-round pick for Courtland Sutton, according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, but Denver declined.
For all intents and purposes, this would have been akin to a three-team trade. The 49ers would have then traded Aiyuk to the Steelers, Russini implies, with the Broncos suddenly playing a central role in the “what if?” Aiyuk-to-Pittsburgh scenario. The Pittsburgh component also includes the team offering the 49ers second- and third-round picks for Aiyuk, SI.com’s Albert Breer reports. The Sutton piece of this puzzle would have involved the Pittsburgh third going to Denver.
Had the Sutton offer produced a deal, the 49ers would have been better positioned to send Aiyuk to the Steelers. With the Broncos keeping Sutton as their top wideout — after a Browns deal involving Amari Cooper fell through — the 49ers were in a tougher spot with Aiyuk. The parties returned to the table and hammered out an extension that locks in fifth-year standout through 2028.
Considering the Broncos unloaded Jerry Jeudy for fifth- and sixth-round picks, this seemingly would have been a tempting proposal. Sutton was acquired before Sean Payton‘s arrival, and only $2MM in guarantees remain on his through-2025 deal. Sutton has also been a trade-rumor mainstay since before the 2022 deadline. Denver holding off here suggests the team wants a proven target around Bo Nix, as a future Sutton trade proposal may well not include third-round compensation.
While Pittsburgh has only George Pickens as a proven starter-level receiver, the team did draft Roman Wilson in Round 3. The Steelers have turned several Day 2 wideouts into promising receivers, with Antonio Brown coming from Day 3. This edition, now featuring ex-Broncos QB Russell Wilson at the controls, looks to include Van Jefferson as Pickens’ top complement. It would have been out of character for the Steelers to bring in an outside receiver of Aiyuk’s caliber (and pay him the $27MM-plus-per-year deal they proposed), but it does look like the Omar Khan-led operation was close to doing so. It needed some help the Broncos were unwilling to provide.
San Francisco’s offer comes nearly 18 months after Denver nearly dealt Sutton to Baltimore. The Ravens were on the verge of acquiring Sutton in March 2023 but backed out and signed Odell Beckham Jr. The Broncos, who had set a second-round asking price on Sutton and a first-rounder on Jeudy last year, went back to the well with the two John Elway-era WR additions. Sutton overtook Jeudy as Russell Wilson’s top target, catching 10 touchdown passes — including a few acrobatic grabs — to help the team recover from a 1-5 start.
Jeudy is now in Cleveland; he may well have become Aiyuk’s Browns complementary piece, with the 49ers wideout nixing a trade that would have sent Cooper to San Francisco. Both Cooper and Sutton expressed disappointment in their contracts this offseason, though their respective teams agreed on mere incentive packages. Despite this low-key end to Denver’s Sutton talks, the team appears to value the 2018 second-rounder in Payton’s second year.
Russini’s report also pours some cold water on the Broncos unloading Sutton before the trade deadline. Denver just cut Tim Patrick, who had run with its starters for much of camp and the preseason, but has Sutton in place as its wideout anchor. The team will attempt to develop recent draftees Marvin Mims, Troy Franklin and Devaughn Vele, as Josh Reynolds is now in place as veteran support. But Sutton, who is entering his age-29 season, will be relied upon to boost Nix’s rookie-year development.
Bobby Babich To Call Bills’ Defensive Plays
The Bills will have a third defensive play-caller in as many seasons. After debating whether he will keep the play sheet or return to a role as a CEO head coach, Sean McDermott will take the latter route in his eighth Bills season.
New Buffalo DC Bobby Babich will handle the calls, moving the Buffalo defensive play-calling situation back to where it was two years ago. Prior to separating with Leslie Frazier, McDermott let his DC calls the shots.
[RELATED: Offseason In Review: Buffalo Bills]
“What I like about Bobby is our experience together and the wisdom he has, both as a secondary coach and a linebacker coach,” McDermott said, via the Buffalo News’ Ryan O’Halloran. “I just feel like he’s a growth-minded individual and coach, and that’s the right approach.”
Babich has observed both McDermott and Frazier call the shots in Buffalo, having been on the team’s staff throughout this regime’s run. The second-generation NFL assistant moved up from assistant DBs coach to safeties coach to linebackers coach during his time in Buffalo. Other teams have taken notice. The Dolphins, Giants and Packers submitted interview requests to Babich. Days later, McDermott promoted him.
The son of former Bears and Jaguars defensive coordinator Bob Babich, Bobby worked with the Browns previously under Mike Pettine and was an assistant alongside McDermott early in Ron Rivera‘s Panthers run. The Babiches worked together on McDermott’s Bills staff from 2017-21, with Bobby’s star rising in recent years.
Overseeing the standout Jordan Poyer–Micah Hyde tandem for four seasons, Bobby Babich then was in the LBs role when Matt Milano earned a first-team All-Pro nod in 2022. The Bills have finished as a top-five defense in four of the past five seasons. The team’s playoff outings — with both Frazier and then McDermott calling the signals — have not reflected those rankings, though key injuries have impacted this unit in that span.
Babich, 41, will take his turn in charge this season. He will already be dealing with a shorthanded group, with Milano set to miss months with a biceps tear. The Bills are also breaking in a new safety duo, as the team released Poyer and has not re-signed Hyde. Tre’Davious White also became a cap casualty. As the Bills adjust on that side of the ball, McDermott will take a step back and allow an ascending coach to try his hand.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 8/29/24
PFR’s practice squad rundown, signaling we are indeed close to games that count, begins Thursday. Here is how teams began to handle their 16-man P-squads.
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: TE Jordan Murray, DL PJ Mustipher, OL Luke Tenuta
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: LB Monty Rice, OL Elijah Wilkinson
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: OL Ja’Tyre Carter, WR Jalen Coker, TE Feleipe Franks, LB Thomas Incoom, DE Tarron Jackson, DT Jayden Peevy, S Demani Richardson
Chicago Bears
- Signed: OL Chris Glaser, DL Sam Roberts
- Released: DB Quindell Johnson, DL Dashaun Mallory
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: G Tashawn Manning, RB Kendall Milton, DT Justin Rogers, DE Isaiah Thomas
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: RB Gary Brightwell, WR Tulu Griffin, TE Cameron Latu, TE Blake Whiteheart
- Released: LS Rex Sunahara
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: DT Phil Hoskins, CB Amani Oruwariye
Detroit Lions
- Released: S C.J. Moore
Houston Texans
- Signed: T Braeden Daniels, TE Cole Fotheringham, WR Xavier Johnson, S Mark Perry, QB Kedon Slovis
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: DT McTelvin Agim, DE Titus Leo, TE Sean McKeon, G Atonio Mafi, K Spencer Shrader
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: OL Blake Hance, S Matthew Jackson, WR Louis Rees-Zammit
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: TE Justin Shorter
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed: S Tony Jefferson, C Sam Mustipher, TE Eric Tomlinson
- Released: CB Robert Kennedy
Los Angeles Rams
- Released: RB Zach Evans
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: QB Tim Boyle
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed: T Ricky Lee, RB Zavier Scott
- Released: WR Jeshaun Jones, RB DeWayne McBride
New England Patriots
- Signed: DE Brevin Allen, G Jerome Carvin, DT Trysten Hill, C Bryan Hudson, G Michael Jordan, WR Jalen Reagor
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: T Austin Deculus, TE Treyton Welch
- Released: TE Mason Fairchild
New York Giants
- Signed: CB Art Green, DT Elijah Garcia, CB Duke Shelley
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: OL Brett Toth
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: CB Anthony Averett, FB Jack Colletto, CB Zyon Gilbert, CB Thomas Graham Jr., LB Marcus Haynes, DL Jacob Slade, RB Jonathan Ward, TE Rodney Williams
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: WR Terrace Marshall, RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: CB Josh Jobe, LB Tyreke Smith
- Released: T Raiqwon O’Neal
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: C Avery Jones, T Lorenz Metz, WR Ryan Miller, WR Cody Thompson
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: DL James Lynch
Washington Commanders
- Signed: LB Jalen Graham, CB Bobby Price
Slovis went to camp with the Colts, joining the team as a UDFA this year. Houston placed Case Keenum on IR and released Tim Boyle, who is now the Dolphins’ P-squad QB. Slovis, who played at USC, Pittsburgh and BYU in college, is now the Texans’ de facto third-stringer.
Shelley has 11 career starts — with the Bears and Vikings — on his resume. He joined the Raiders last year but ended up with the Rams, playing in 11 games as a backup. The Giants have spent time searching for a cornerback answer, having not been too satisfied with their Cor’Dale Flott–Nick McCloud CB2 competition. New York did not make any waiver claims at the position Wednesday.
Reagor, who played for the Patriots last season, is back after being released earlier this week. The former Minnesota first-rounder played in 11 New England games last season, returning a kick for a touchdown. Latu joins the Browns after being a 49ers cut. The 2023 third-round pick missed all of last season with an ACL tear. Jefferson is back with the Bolts hours after being released.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/29/24
Here are Thursday’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed from practice squad: LB Krys Barnes
- Placed on IR: CB Elijah Jones
Carolina Panthers
- Signed from practice squad: TE Jordan Matthews
- Placed on IR: DL Jaden Crumedy
Cincinnati Bengals
- Re-signed: RB Trayveon Williams
- Placed on IR: DT McKinnley Jackson
Dallas Cowboys
- Placed on IR: T Chuma Edoga (story)
Denver Broncos
- Signed: LB Kristian Welch
- Waived: LB Levelle Bailey
Detroit Lions
- Placed on IR: DL John Cominsky (story)
Green Bay Packers
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: CB Brandon Facyson, RB Jarveon Howard
Las Vegas Raiders
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: LB Elerson Smith
Los Angeles Chargers
- Waived: RB Jaret Patterson
Los Angeles Rams
- Placed on IR: OL Conor McDermott
Miami Dolphins
- Signed: LS Blake Ferguson
- Placed on IR: S Patrick McMorris
New York Giants
- Signed: LB Curtis Bolton, FB Jakob Johnson
- Placed on IR: OL Austin Schlottmann
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: WR Dennis Houston, OL Jalen Mayfield
Philadelphia Eagles
- Waived: DT Marlon Tuipulotu
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: LB Julius Welschof
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: LB Kalen DeLoach
Tennessee Titans
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: WR Kyle Philips
Washington Commanders
- Removed from IR via injury settlement: LB Keandre Jones, S Ben Nikke
Schlottmann suffered what Brian Daboll called a long-term injury. Elaborating on the injury Schlottmann suffered in practice Wednesday, The Athletic’s Dan Duggan notes the veteran backup O-lineman will rehab a broken fibula. The injury is expected to shut down the free agency addition for at least two months. No surgery is on tap for Schlottmann. The Giants considering him for activation may depend on their injury situation, as teams only have eight regular-season IR activations. The Giants have seven presently, as they used a summer IR designation on linebacker Matthew Adams on Tuesday.
Titans Claim CB Darrell Baker Jr.
As they transitioned from Stephon Gilmore‘s one-and-done, they trotted out an unproven cornerback group save for slot ace Kenny Moore. One of the players Indianapolis used as a starter to open the season is now on Tennessee’s roster.
After the Colts waived Darrell Baker Jr. on Wednesday, the Titans submitted a successful claim, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. Two years remain on Baker’s rookie contract.
Baker initially made Indianapolis’ 53-man roster, but the team subsequently claimed Samuel Womack off waivers from the 49ers. Rather than passing through waivers to a potential Indy practice squad slot, Baker will head to another AFC South team’s 53-man roster.
The Colts opened last season with Baker as a starting corner and gave him five more starts on the outside as the season progressed. Baker was not viewed as a starter coming into camp, and the Indianapolis Star’s Joel Erickson adds 2023 seventh-round pick Jaylon Jones won the job opposite Julius Brents. Baker had been working opposite Dallis Flowers with the Colts’ second-stringers. Baker played 467 defensive snaps last season — after none his rookie year — and Pro Football Focus ranked the former UDFA outside the top 100 at the position.
Tennessee moved on from three-year contributor Elijah Molden via trade and cut bait on Caleb Farley‘s first-round contract. As Dennard Wilson takes over on defense in Nashville, the team added two big-ticket pieces in free agent Chidobe Awuzie and trade pickup L’Jarius Sneed. With Roger McCreary expected to patrol the slot, the Titans look to have Baker en route as a second-string option. The team also rosters fifth-round rookie Jarvis Brownlee at the position.
The Titans also signed Nick Vannett from their practice squad and placed fourth-round rookie linebacker Cedric Gray on IR, Wilson adds,
Browns Restructure Deshaun Watson’s Deal
For a second straight year, the Browns are restructuring the NFL’s most player-friendly deal. As a result, another quarterback will set the NFL record for single-player cap hit.
Cleveland’s Deshaun Watson restructure will create $35.83MM in cap space, ESPN.com’s Field Yates reports. The Browns moved $44.79MM of Watson’s base salary into a signing bonus. While more cap space will be available to the Browns this year, they will need much of it for carryover money because of the quarterback contract they authorized in 2022.
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Watson had been set to carry a record-obliterating $63.77MM cap number this season. The Browns have dropped it to $27.94MM. Of course, with restructures, future cap hits spike. This will be the case here, as Thursday’s reworking inflates Watson’s 2025 and ’26 cap numbers to an astonishing $72.94MM. More restructure work likely remains for a Browns team desperate to see its historically expensive trade piece take steps forward.
The Browns are now an NFL-most $51.6MM under the 2024 cap, but as The Athletic’s Zac Jackson notes, they will need much of this for rollover purposes. Entering today, the Browns resided ahead of only the perpetually cap-strapped Saints for projected 2025 cap space, sitting $66.9MM over. Rolling most of their 2024 total to 2025 would obviously create considerable relief, but the long-term Watson ramifications remain steep for a Cleveland franchise that has not seen anything remotely close from its QB to justify the 2022 trade and extension costs.
No one has followed the Browns’ lead for guarantees; the league has deemed this an outlier contract. The Browns gave Watson a five-year, $230MM fully guaranteed extension in March 2022. Nearly 2 1/2 years later, no other team has guaranteed a quarterback more than $146.5MM (Joe Burrow) at signing. The Browns had previously restructured the Watson contract in March 2023, beginning a process that has seen the eighth-year passer’s future cap hits balloon.
The team remains pot-committed with Watson through 2026. The restructures, which have two void years in place as the QB’s signing bonus is now spread through 2028, would lead to a $26.8MM dead money hit if Watson does not re-sign by the start of the 2027 league year. That seems manageable to a Browns team that has unimaginable — even in a world where the Broncos just took on $83MM-plus in dead cap by cutting Russell Wilson — dead money figures attached to its QB in 2025 or ’26.
Cleveland has seen its QB miss 11 games in each of his two seasons, with the former Houston Pro Bowler suspended upon arrival and then battling a shoulder injury that eventually shut him down in 2023. Watson, 29 in September, did not play any preseason games and was only cleared for full work August 11. The Browns shuffled their coaching staff, hiring Ken Dorsey, to better capitalize on their QB’s strengths. For the most part, those have yet to be on display post-Houston.
With this contract adjustment further tying the Browns to Watson, they will need to see notable improvement from him this season. Though, Watson’s guarantees do not exactly provide much incentive for an extreme turnaround. Dak Prescott‘s $55.13MM cap hit is now in place to set the NFL record, and the Cowboys appear prepared to carry that into the season.
Eagles Claim DT Byron Young
One of two Byron Youngs chosen in the 2023 third round, the defensive tackle is on the move. After the Raiders waived their Byron Young on Wednesday, the Eagles submitted a successful claim, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero tweets.
Chosen 70th overall out of Alabama, Young played in six games last season and saw only 99 defensive snaps for the Raiders. The Rams received more promising work from their Byron Young — an edge rusher out of Tennessee — and the Eagles will take a flier on the other defender. Three years remain on the DT’s rookie contract.
The Raiders nabbed Young with the first of their two third-round picks last year, later choosing slot receiver Tre Tucker. The latter is ticketed for a regular role in his second season, with the team cutting Hunter Renfrow. Las Vegas spent big for Christian Wilkins in free agency, further limiting Young’s upward mobility. The team also waived D-lineman Matthew Butler, a 2022 fifth-round pick, on Tuesday. Butler, however, landed on Las Vegas’ practice squad. Young became a more attractive commodity on waivers.
Young, 23, will join former first-round picks Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis among Philly’s DT corps, a group that includes former third-rounder Milton Williams as well. The Eagles lost Fletcher Cox to retirement. Marlon Tuipulotu also remains on the Eagles’ 53-man roster. Young will make for seven D-linemen on the team’s roster, being set to learn Vic Fangio‘s scheme.
Coming to Vegas after earning first-team All-SEC acclaim in 2022, Young totaled four sacks and five tackles for loss in his final Crimson Tide season. In 2021, he produced nine TFLs and two sacks. While it is surprising to see a player drafted so highly cut after one year, the Raiders changed regimes in that span, firing the Dave Ziegler–Josh McDaniels pair and then hiring Tom Telesco as GM. While Antonio Pierce was in place when Young was drafted, he stood as the Silver and Black’s linebackers coach at that point. The Eagles will now gauge Young’s form.
Saints Waive RB/KR Kene Nwangwu
AUGUST 29: Nwangwu will not, in fact, be playing for the Saints in 2024. New Orleans waived him with a failed physical designation, as noted by ESPN’s Katherine Terrell. That surprising move leaves the team in need of a new returner option, and will likely limit the interest shown in Nwangwu until he returns to full health.
AUGUST 28: The Vikings attempted to find a trade taker for Kene Nwangwu‘s rookie contract. While no one stepped in, the Saints are bringing in the running back/return specialist a day later.
Nwangwu will now play his contract year with the Saints, per NewOrleans.football’s Nick Underhill. This will reunite Nwangwu with new Saints OC Klint Kubiak, who was Minnesota’s play-caller during the running back’s 2021 rookie season.
Kubiak was with the Vikings when they drafted Nwangwu in the 2021 fifth round and operated as the team’s play-caller that year. The Vikings moved on from Mike Zimmer (and Kubiak) following that season, but Nwangwu has mostly excelled as a return man. His inability to carve out a role on offense affected Minnesota’s decision to move on Tuesday.
The Vikes added Aaron Jones and saw Ty Chandler show promise late last season, putting a low ceiling on Nwangwu in Kevin O’Connell‘s offense. But the contract-year RB would be of interest in the kicking game — particularly this year. The Iowa State alum finished with two kick-return TDs as a rookie and added a third career KOR score in 2022.
New Orleans has Alvin Kamara entrenched as its starter, with the five-time Pro Bowler seemingly in his final season — barring a substantial pay-cut agreement — with the team. Jamaal Williams is also in Year 2 of a three-year, $12MM deal. Kendre Miller, however, has not practiced since the first day of training camp. Dealing with a hamstring malady for the second straight summer, the 2023 third-round pick moved to IR with a return designation. Nwangwu will take a roster spot in the meantime and will aim to carve out a permanent role.
Steelers Name Russell Wilson QB Starter
Russell Wilson faced a challenge from his pole-position spot, but the veteran will hold off Justin Fields. The Steelers will go with the 13th-year passer to open the season, Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer reports. The Steelers have since announced it will be Wilson in Week 1.
The Steelers went to some lengths to assure Wilson he would be the starter. This was communicated to the decorated veteran before the Kenny Pickett trade and then after the team acquired Fields. While the latter has made a push that indicates this situation is not resolved from a long-term perspective, Fields will begin his Pittsburgh tenure as a backup.
Fields was believed to have supporters in the building, as the Steelers went about adjusting his footwork from his Bears days. Rather than name a starter before the third preseason game, Mike Tomlin waited until midway through the Steelers’ final week of summer workouts. This does not suggest Wilson will have a firm grip here, despite the early-offseason buzz about this job, but the 35-year-old passer will soon make his 189th career start.
Despite Fields closing the gap, the 25-year-old trade acquisition never emerged as a frontrunner. The Steelers may have been more inclined, after seeing Pickett stumble, to go with a more experienced option early. After trading Pickett, Pittsburgh signed off on a unique arrangement. Wilson and Fields are on low-cost deals that expire at season’s end. The team is not deviating from its policy of not negotiating extensions in-season, and no talks are planned to commence before the campaign. Both passers will head into contract years, and although reports about the Steelers eyeing a post-2024 future with both have come out, this Wilson-Fields setup will almost certainly be a one-and-done situation.
Calling this a “difficult decision,” Tomlin communicated it to both QBs today. This was Wilson’s first time in a quarterback competition since his rookie year, when he beat out Matt Flynn for the Seahawks’ job. The potential Hall of Famer held it for 10 years, but the Seahawks — after Wilson’s first injury-related absence came during a season that brought a step back from his Pro Bowl-level form — dealt his $35MM-per-year contract to the Broncos for an eight-asset package in March 2022. Wilson then signed a $49MM-AAV deal with Denver, going through an infamous tenure with the AFC West franchise.
Wilson’s Broncos run can be classified as a financial disaster, and while Sean Payton made it clear his fit with the off-script maven was poor, the 2023 season went much better for the former third-round pick compared to the shocking 2022 outcome.
Wilson rebounded from his rough season with Nathaniel Hackett, a campaign in which the Broncos allowed the QB to help design the offense and then gave him other perks, by throwing 26 touchdown passes compared to just eight interceptions with Payton at the controls. This still produced a late-season benching — after a behind-the-scenes drama unfolded regarding Wilson’s 2025 guarantee vesting date — but Wilson did show some better form, helping the Broncos to a five-game win streak that moved them into the playoff chase.
Denver took on a record-smashing dead money sum to separate from the embattled quarterback; regardless of offset language, Denver’s cap penalty over the next two years more than doubles any other single-player number. The Steelers swooped in an have the accomplished passer on a one-year, $1.21MM deal. But Wilson, who battled injuries in 2022 to contribute to his stunning regression, missed multiple weeks of training camp with a calf injury and only recently received full clearance. This allowed Fields to catch up a bit, and this situation will be one to monitor early in the season.
In the preseason, Fields went 19-for-27 for 199 yards. Playing in two preseason games, Wilson was 10 of 12 for 73 yards. Both struggled to move the offense in Pittsburgh’s second preseason game, but Wilson led a TD drive in the team’s finale. Fields did not lead any scoring drives against Detroit this past weekend. Fields probably offers more upside at this point, as Wilson will turn 36 in November, but the veteran brings a higher floor.
The Steelers will aim to pair Wilson with a veteran-laden defense, and it remains to be seen if the team will pry Brandon Aiyuk from the 49ers. Though, that scenario appears a longshot right now.