Commanders Eyeing Kicker Addition
Three players have taken turns as the lone kicker on Washington’s roster this offseason. Riley Patterson sits in that role presently, but it does not sound like the Commanders are committed to the former Jaguars and Lions specialist just yet.
Brandon McManus held that spot for nearly three months, while Ramiz Ahmed entered camp as the only kicker on the roster. The Commanders signed Ahmed shortly after releasing McManus once a civil lawsuit alleging sexual assault emerged. Not long after claiming Patterson off waivers from the Jags, the Commanders cut Ahmed, who has one game of NFL experience.
Patterson has stood as the only kicker on Washington’s 90-man roster for nearly a week, but he went 2-for-4 on field goals against the Dolphins on Saturday. Patterson also missed his only field goal try in the Commanders’ preseason opener. Dan Quinn has since said the Commanders are looking for another kicker, via the Washington Post’s Nicki Jhabvala, who notes there is a real possibility the team’s Week 1 kicker is not yet on the roster.
Late August has become a point on the calendar to monitor for kicker changes; Patterson has changed teams at this point in the past. The Lions waived Patterson in 2022, leading him to the Jags, who employed him as their kicker throughout that season. Patterson, whom the Jags traded back to the Lions upon signing McManus in May 2023, spent last season in Detroit and Cleveland before signing a reserve/futures deal with Jacksonville in January. His time in Washington may be short, however.
The Commanders figure to be interested in either making a trade or claiming a kicker another team cuts. Non-vested veterans whom teams cut before the August 27 deadline to finalize initial 53-man rosters will head to waivers, and by virtue of their 4-13 record, the Commanders hold the No. 2 priority. That will come in handy as they evaluate their kicker need compared to other veterans of interest who come across the wire.
A vested vet who is cut passes straight to free agency. Nine teams are currently carrying at least two kickers, with the Packers still rostering three. Randy Bullock and Brett Maher are notable veterans who remain unsigned. If the Packers move on from Greg Joseph (to keep either incumbent Anders Carlson or rookie UDFA Alex Hale), he would pass to free agency. The Browns are also carrying Cade York behind recently extended ex-Washington leg Dustin Hopkins, while the Jets have Austin Seibert behind the recently re-signed Greg Zuerlein. Washington did not re-sign Joey Slye, who is currently competing with Chad Ryland for the Patriots’ job.
Dillon Radunz, Nicholas Petit-Frere In Line To Start For Titans
Saahdiq Charles‘ retirement caught the Titans off-guard, but the team had been pitting the free agency addition in an even competition with Dillon Radunz. As a result, the former second-round pick has zeroed in on Tennessee’s starting right guard spot. More continuity is likely here, even as GM Ran Carthon has largely reshaped the offense.
Carthon’s purge of Jon Robinson-era players is not set to include the right side of the Titans’ offensive line. Those position battles are not finished yet, but HC Brian Callahan said Radunz and Nicholas Petit-Frere are moving toward being the team’s starters.
[RELATED: Assessing Titans’ 2024 Offseason]
During a decade in which the Titans have been unable to find right tackle stability — since they let Jack Conklin walk as a 2020 free agent — it is interesting that two players who battled for the gig not long ago are likely to start alongside one another. The Titans’ disastrous Isaiah Wilson investment gave way to a second-round Radunz pick in 2021, but the North Dakota State product was unable to win the job. David Quessenberry started primarily in 2021, and a 2022 competition — after Quessenberry’s free agency exit — produced Petit-Frere as the starter. The 2022 third-round pick, however, encountered a gambling suspension last year and soon sustained a season-ending shoulder injury.
Radunz played four positions last season but primarily worked at right tackle. Pro Football Focus slotted him 41st at the position, a positive step during another injury-plagued Titans season up front. Radunz logged 504 snaps at right tackle and 166 at left guard, coming back after a December 2022 ACL tear. He played 19 snaps at right guard in 2023 and may have entered camp behind Charles, but the ex-Washington starter’s retirement changed the equation for the Titans.
Should Callahan’s current expectation come to fruition, this will also mark the second time in three years Daniel Brunskill will have been demoted. The 49ers used him as their starting right guard throughout the 2020 and ’21 seasons but demoted him to a platoon role with Spencer Burford in 2022. Brunskill, who followed Carthon to Tennessee last year, started all 14 games he played with the Titans in 2023.
This would be a nice opportunity for Radunz, who is in a contract year. Two seasons remain on Petit-Frere’s rookie deal. If an upset occurs and the job goes to another right tackle candidate, the Titans would go into a season with a sixth Week 1 RT in six years.
Petit-Frere started 16 games for the 2022 Titans but played in just three games last season. The team acquired ex-Bill Callahan Cleveland charge Leroy Watson via trade this year and signed veteran Geron Christian; those two joined 2023 sixth-round pick Jaelyn Duncan (five starts last season) in vying for roster spots.
Tennessee has locked-in starters at left tackle (JC Latham), left guard (Peter Skoronski) and center (Lloyd Cushenberry). If DeAndre Hopkins recovers in time for Week 1, the Titans are on track to have eight Carthon acquisitions as offensive starters. Two Robinson-era blockers, however, are poised to remain in the equation for another year.
Bo Nix Moving Toward Broncos’ Starting Job; Zach Wilson Gaining Ground?
AUGUST 19: In the wake of another impressive Nix preseason performance on Sunday, Payton declined to confirm he will get the nod for Week 1. He did indicate (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk) he was impressed by Nix’s showing, but no official announcement has been made regarding a starter yet. Both Wilson and Stidham led scoring drives against the Packers, so Denver’s QB depth chart remains uncertain at this point.
AUGUST 16: Jarrett Stidham started the Broncos’ preseason opener, and Zach Wilson remains on the roster. But Bo Nix has long been expected to take over at some point fairly early in the season. That point may now be Week 1.
Rumblings about Nix usurping Stidham to take the reins from the jump have emerged, and the Denver Post’s Troy Renck now offers that “little debate” exists about who will start for the Broncos. Nix, who fared well in his preseason debut, has steadily impressed. An offseason report noted Nix had ground to cover to catch Stidham, but given the team’s investment and the QB’s experience (61 starts), it is unsurprising the gap has narrowed to the point the veteran’s roster spot is not guaranteed.
[RELATED: Assessing Broncos’ 2024 Offseason]
Indeed, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini adds it would surprise if Nix were not out there with the starters in Week 1. Nix went 15-for-21 with 125 passing yards against the Colts, throwing a touchdown pass and leading the team to four drives. The Oregon prospect is starting the Broncos’ second preseason game, though Sean Payton said Stidham (4-for-7, 37 yards) would play more Sunday.
Nix opening the season would be new territory for the Broncos, who did not give Drew Lock, Paxton Lynch, Tim Tebow or Jay Cutler the Week 1 keys (Lock started his rookie season on IR; the rest opened their rookie years as backups). No Broncos rookie QB has begun a season as the starter since John Elway 41 years ago, but after taking on a staggering dead money total via the Russell Wilson release, it has always seemed likely Payton would turn to the player he drafted in Round 1.
Regarding Nix’s backup, Wilson’s recent showings have clouded that situation. The ex-Jets bust has looked better in practice recently, Renck adds, and Payton praised his showing against Indianapolis (10-for-13, 117 yards). A Broncos coach called Wilson “rejuvenated,” Russini adds. The former No. 2 overall pick, who has Nix outflanked in terms of raw arm talent, would bring more dead money ($2.73MM) than Stidham ($2MM) if cut, but Renck adds finances are not expected to prominently factor into Denver’s QB2 decision.
Payton kept two QBs last season, carrying Ben DiNucci on the practice squad, and has generally gone with a two-QB setup during his career as a head coach. Of course, Drew Brees‘ durability helped on that front. The Broncos could also keep Stidham and Wilson and listen for trade interest. If the team cut Wilson, he would need to clear waivers to make it back to Denver’s P-squad. Attached to the two-year, $10MM contract he signed in 2023, Stidham is a vested veteran and would go straight to free agency.
Stidham sticking around would provide a veteran presence, even if Wilson has far more starting experience. The latter’s woeful Jets tenure, featuring three benchings and partially involving embattled ex-Broncos HC Nathaniel Hackett, would stand to leave the Broncos vulnerable if Nix suffers an injury. But after initially being dropped out of the starter competition as Stidham remained involved, Wilson has nudged his way back into the conversation for at least making the 53-man roster in his contract year.
49ers Have ‘Slight Edge’ On Steelers For Brandon Aiyuk
A future in which the Steelers employ George Pickens and Brandon Aiyuk for Russell Wilson and/or Justin Fields — and then potentially a near-future heir apparent — to target remains in play, but as of Saturday morning, it is not the expected scenario.
The Steelers remain on standby here as a fallback option, according to ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler, who notes this situation has shifted from being a coin flip between Pittsburgh and San Francisco back to a place in which the 49ers have a slight edge to end up extending the wide receiver. Since a Tuesday report confirmed the teams have trade parameters in place, this storyline has trended in this direction.
Indeed, Fowler adds execs around the league expect this drawn-out process to conclude with the 49ers extending Aiyuk. Since the trade framework came out — though, it is not known what the Steelers are prepared to trade — 49ers efforts to wrap this extension saga have headlined the latest chapters in an endless news cycle. Aiyuk has been at 49ers meetings and been seen talking to teammates at practice during his hold-in. John Lynch said Friday the aim remains for the 49ers to extend the second-team All-Pro.
The 49ers let Aiyuk’s camp talk terms with other teams, which led to Patriots and Browns proposals. Both AFC teams and the Commanders, who were also interested at one point (as they now roster former Aiyuk college QB Jayden Daniels), are not believed to be in the picture any longer. A 49ers-or-Steelers option has loomed regarding Aiyuk’s long-term future for a bit now, but San Francisco still needs to check some key boxes to finalize a long-sought-after deal.
Aiyuk has not yet been compelled to sign, as Fowler points out certain contractual demands remain unfulfilled. Guarantees and/or when those guarantees vest may well be part of this delay; Aiyuk targeted A.J. Brown‘s $84MM guarantee number weeks ago, and the Bears giving D.J. Moore $82.6MM in total guarantees gives the Bay Area resident more ammo here.
That said, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo adds the 49ers and Aiyuk have agreed on the contract’s central parts, indicating there is an issue with the final year of the team’s proposal. It is unknown how long of a deal the 49ers proposed, but the subject of phony final years — which are present in Davante Adams‘ Raiders deal and were in Tyreek Hill‘s first Dolphins contract — may be part of these negotiations. The 49ers used a lofty final-year salary to prop up Trent Williams‘ AAV — on a six-year contract — back in 2021. But Aiyuk and the team having agreed on the deal’s key points suggests a resolution is in sight. The 49ers made their most recent offer around a week ago, per Garafolo.
The fifth-year receiver has been connected to wanting an AAV in the $30MM range, while the 49ers were tied to a $26-$27MM-per-year offer earlier this summer. The 49ers have upped their offer, and Fowler does float the $30MM number — or a figure slightly less — as the likely endgame here. The Steelers were believed to have offered Aiyuk around $28MM per year.
Continued 49ers interest in avoiding a trade puts the Steelers in strange territory. As their Aiyuk trade effort suddenly looks shaky, the Steelers may need to come up with a backup plan to complement Pickens. As it stands, Van Jefferson — he of one 400-plus-yard season in four tries — is ticketed as the team’s top in-house WR2 option, The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo notes (subscription required). It has trended this way since Pittsburgh’s offseason program. Third-rounder Roman Wilson looms, but he has missed time during camp due to injury.
It will be interesting to see if the Steelers become connected to another receiver as a safety option — in the now-likelier event the 49ers finally extend Aiyuk.
Offseason In Review: New Orleans Saints
Checking in as a lower-profile team since Drew Brees‘ retirement and Sean Payton‘s exit, the Saints have not deviated too far from their Payton-era M.O. No rebuild has taken place, and GM Mickey Loomis‘ cap gymnastics remain in high gear. But the team’s fight has produced solidly middle-class residency post-Brees. This offseason brought some attempted fixes and the usual avalanche of restructures. Will they be enough to move the Saints out of this unremarkable sector they have populated for the past few years?
Extensions and restructures:
- Gave LB Demario Davis two-year, $17.25MM extension ($13.25MM guaranteed)
- Reached three-year, $22.5MM extension ($11.19MM guaranteed) with LB Pete Werner
- Extended S Tyrann Mathieu on two-year, $13.75MM deal ($7.5MM guaranteed)
- Reached two-year, $6.19MM deal ($1MM guaranteed) with ERFA WR Rashid Shaheed
- Freed up $23MM in cap space by restructuring QB Derek Carr‘s deal
- Created $14.1MM in cap space by restructuring T Ryan Ramczyk‘s contract
- Restructured CB Marshon Lattimore‘s contract, creating $11MM-plus in cap space
- Adjusted C Erik McCoy and DT Nathan Shepherd‘s contracts, creating $10.18MM in cap space
- Restructured contracts of DEs Cameron Jordan and Carl Granderson, G Cesar Ruiz, clearing $23MM in space
- Reworked Taysom Hill‘s contract to create nearly $7MM in cap space
We will go ahead and assume none of our remaining Offseason In Review offerings will feature this level of restructure volume, but the Saints’ perpetual quest to delay a rebuild/cap reset is one of the NFL’s more underrated offseason features. Loomis continues to creatively reach cap compliance — to the point it is almost easier to name the starters whose contracts were not adjusted. More than $80MM over the cap entering the offseason — Loomis has moved under the cap from deeper in the red before — the Saints benefited from the $30.6MM cap spike.
When the Saints signed Carr, they gave him a $70MM practical guarantee. The 11th-year veteran will be due a $10MM roster bonus (already guaranteed) next year and has $10MM of his 2025 base salary ($30MM) guaranteed. More than $40MM in signing bonus money is now on New Orleans’ books from 2025-28, with three void years included in the deal, as this restructure added $4.6MM to each prorated figure.
This rework will tie Carr to the Saints through at least 2025. Before any other restructures (which may well happen, as this is New Orleans), Carr would cost the team more than $28MM to release in 2026.
The Saints did some work at linebacker this offseason, signing off on another Davis deal before giving Warner a midlevel second contract. Thriving in Dennis Allen‘s scheme, Davis he has been one of this NFL period’s best off-ball linebackers. He is 5-for-5 in All-Pro honors (one first team, four second teams) since his age-30 season, continuing as a three-down player who boosts the Saints’ pass rush in addition to his traditional LB responsibilities. Davis has been a revelation in New Orleans, registering 29 sacks since his 2018 arrival. In terms of off-ball LBs, no one else has more than 23 in that span.
Like ex-Davis teammate Chris Harris at his peak, Pro Football Focus views the do-it-all linebacker in rare air. The advanced metrics site has rated the aging defender as a top-eight off-ball LB in each of the past five seasons. The Saints have used the 12-year vet on between 97-100% of their defensive snaps over the past four, and without noticeable slippage at 35, Davis secured more than two thirds of his 2025 salary guaranteed on this deal — his fourth Saints contract. A key part of Allen’s defenses during the Saints’ late-2010s surge, the perennially underrated defender has a decent shot at playing an age-36 season in New Orleans.
While predicting someone to outlast Davis has been unwise, Werner’s contract puts him in position to anchor the team’s defensive second level after the stalwart’s retirement. Though the Saints can escape this contract fairly easily in 2026, Werner is signed through 2027 on a deal that ranks 18th among non-rush ‘backers.
Rather than try his luck in a contract year and hit free agency, the former second-round pick took an offer in line with an expanding LB middle class. The top of this position’s market thinned this offseason, but teams continue to flood the $6-$10MM-per-year range here. Werner became a full-time player in 2023, logging an 88% snap rate. The Saints expect the 25-year-old defender to build on that run in the mid-2020s.
Signed shortly after the 2022 draft, Mathieu has continued a strong career in his hometown. The two-time Super Bowl starter has not commanded a deal in line with his Chiefs pact (three years, $42MM back in 2019) but remains a productive player. The Saints gave Mathieu a second contract this offseason, one that created $6MM-plus in cap space. Mathieu, 31, secured 2024 guarantees that were not previously in place, though the through-2025 deal does not necessarily ensure the Honey Badger will be back next season.
Lastly, the Saints adjusted Lattimore’s contract in a way that would make him easier to trade. Though, time is running out for that to matter in 2024. The team inserted option bonuses into Lattimore’s contract, which has now been thrice restructured. The $2.76MM 2024 bonus does not need to be paid until just before Week 1, but it would still be reasonable for the Saints to pay the bonus and then trade Lattimore in-season — depending on the offers that emerge. For several weeks now, however, the team has expected to retain Lattimore for an eighth season.
The Pro Bowl cornerback missed seven games last season and 10 in 2022. Some within the organization took issue with the pace at which Lattimore recovered from a lacerated kidney (2022) and last year’s ankle injury. The Saints also considered trades in March, with teams showing interest. Several clubs believed the Saints were indeed shopping Lattimore, whose five-year, $97MM extension runs through 2026. For now, the four-time Pro Bowler remains a Saint. But this will be a situation to monitor if New Orleans starts slowly and Lattimore stays healthy. That said, the 28-year-old CB fits in on a defense flooded with veterans.
Next year’s salary cap number will not surface for months, but the Saints are projected to be $36MM higher than any other team. OverTheCap has New Orleans slotted at $95MM-plus over the projected 2025 salary ceiling. This would be another big test for Loomis, who would face more difficult choices if a fourth straight season goes by without a playoff berth.
Free agency additions:
- Chase Young, DE. One year, $13MM ($12.55MM guaranteed)
- Willie Gay, LB. One year, $3MM ($3MM guaranteed)
- Cedrick Wilson Jr., WR. Two years, $5.75MM ($2.85MM guaranteed)
- Oli Udoh, OL. One year, $2MM ($2MM guaranteed)
- Will Harris, DB. One year, $1.29MM ($492K guaranteed)
- Khaleke Hudson, LB. One year, $1.29MM ($492K guaranteed)
- Lucas Patrick, OL. One year, $1.38MM ($404K guaranteed)
- Jesse Davis, OL. One year, $1.13MM
- Justin Herron, OL. One year, $1.13MM
- Stanley Morgan, WR. One year, $1.13MM
- Equanimeous St. Brown, WR. One year, $1.13MM
- Roderic Teamer, DB. One year, $1.13MM
- Shane Lemieux, G. One year, $1.1MM
While this free agency period was less eventful than last year’s Carr-centered project, the Saints added some complementary pieces. One is a high-upside play to address a position that has suddenly become vulnerable.
Young joins a Saints team that saw Cam Jordan post just two sacks — admittedly in an injury-plagued season — in 2023. Payton Turner has also failed to take off after being a first-round pick. The Saints relied on former UDFA Carl Granderson to anchor their pass rush last season, and while he delivered 8.5 sacks and 20 QB hits, the team needs more help as Jordan enters his age-35 season. Enter Young, who stood as one of the most high-variance free agents in recent memory.
Looking like a future star during his 2020 rookie year, Young saw a severe knee injury sidetrack his career in 2021. A torn ACL and ruptured patellar tendon kept the former Defensive Rookie of the Year on the shelf for over a year, but last season brought rejuvenation to the point several teams contacted the Commanders about a trade. The 49ers gave up a third-round compensatory choice for Young, who matched his career-high with 7.5 sacks last season and established a new high-water mark with 15 QB hits. These are not eye-popping numbers, but Young played 19 games last season after losing most of his previous two.
Of course, Young needed the full offseason to rehab a separate issue. A neck injury cost Young Week 1 of last season, and although the four-year veteran played through it, the matter affected his trade market. Young, 25, underwent surgery but has since returned to practice. His health history prompted the Saints to build a contract around per-game roster bonuses; those comprise $7.99MM of Young’s outlay.
As Montez Sweat‘s durability (and production while Young was out) keyed a $24.5MM-per-year Bears extension, Young is deep in “prove it” territory. The former No. 2 overall pick will attempt to rebuild his value, and it will probably take a mostly healthy season for a multiyear offer to form. Otherwise, Young may be on a Jadeveon Clowney-like career arc.
While Drue Tranquill fetched a three-year deal worth $19MM to remain a Chief, Gay could only command a $3MM pact in free agency. Gay has made 47 career starts, and the former second-round pick notched nine tackles for loss (88 total) in just 13 games in 2022. Gay only made 58 stops in 16 games last season, however. The two-time Super Bowl starter has never seen a snap rate north of 70%, and given the Saints’ LB composition, that is unlikely to occur in New Orleans. Gay, 26, can hope to use this season to better his 2025 market.
Re-signings:
- Johnathan Abram, S. One year, $1.29MM ($80K guaranteed)
- Adam Prentice, FB. One year, $1.13MM
Notable losses:
- Zack Baun, LB
- Lynn Bowden, WR
- Ryan Connelly, LB
- Cameron Erving, OL
- Max Garcia, G
- Jimmy Graham, TE
- James Hurst, OL (retired)
- Lonnie Johnson, DB
- Keith Kirkwood, WR
- Marcus Maye, S (released)
- Andrus Peat, OL
- Malcolm Roach, DT
- Michael Thomas, WR (post-June 1 cut)
- Trai Turner, G
- Jameis Winston, QB (post-June 1 cut)
- Isaac Yiadom, CB
Jettisoning a complex contract marked an appropriate ending for the Saints and Thomas, as the sides enjoyed a torrid start before an extension soon gave way to the former All-Pro becoming one of the NFL’s most injury-prone players. No team has signed Thomas, who would be going into an age-31 season after having missed 47 games during the 2020s. Last season actually brought Thomas’ highest participation rate (10 games) than any since 2019, but the Saints could not realistically continue to roster the eight-year veteran. It was a bit strange they circled back to Thomas in 2023.
Still holding the NFL’s single-season reception record (149), Thomas earned his five-year, $96.25MM extension ahead of that 2019 season. He posted back-to-back first-team All-Pro slates, becoming a lead cast member during the Saints’ late-2010s resurgence. Thomas joined Alvin Kamara as elite skill players in Brees’ twilight years, but the 2020 season provided an unfortunate harbinger of a freefall.
Multiple injuries, including an ankle malady, sidelined Thomas in 2020. He then missed all of 2021, which featured a dispute with the Saints regarding a recovery timetable. In 2022, Thomas played three games before a toe injury intervened. Despite Thomas’ 2023 contract being framed as a one-year deal — before yet another malady (knee) shut him down — the Saints are paying $11.2MM in 2024 dead money and $9.2MM in 2025. Thomas’ 565 career catches trail only Marques Colston in franchise history. Injuries derailed a potential Hall of Fame career.
Geno Smith Seeking Seahawks Extension
Geno Smith‘s stunning 2022 season prompted the Seahawks to re-sign him, authorizing a big raise. Smith’s current contract — initially reported as a three-year, $105MM deal — checked in much lower once the fine print emerged, and the team has flexibility due to the contract’s structure.
The resurgent quarterback agreed to a contract worth $75MM in base value, and it gave the Seahawks the option to move on without too much dead money in 2024. Although the Seahawks restructured the deal this offseason to lock in their starter for 2024, they could break free for just $13.5MM in dead cap in 2025. For a veteran starting quarterback, Smith is at the low end of the salary spectrum.
Following Smith’s agreement, the Saints gave Derek Carr a four-year, $150MM deal that featured $70MM in practical guarantees. Soon after, the Giants re-signed Daniel Jones on a four-year, $160MM pact that brought $81MM guaranteed. Kirk Cousins recently received a $100MM practical guarantee, with that Falcons accord coming soon after the Buccaneers re-upped Baker Mayfield at three years and $100MM ($50MM practical guarantee). These deals make Smith’s look quite team-friendly, and NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo said during a recent podcast with Pucksports.com the 12th-year QB has approached the team about an extension.
Smith’s camp talked about the deal with the Seahawks in the offseason, but it does not seem the team is too interested in an extension or a true adjustment. Nothing sounds imminent, and Garafolo mentioned incentives as a potential outcome to resolve this situation before Week 1. Smith is due $12.7MM in base salary this year and counts $26.4MM against Seattle’s cap. The Seahawks’ February restructure did not bring any void years, only inflating Smith’s 2025 cap hit to $38.4MM.
In mid-February, the Seahawks informed Smith he would remain on their roster past a Feb. 16 point in which his $12.7MM base would shift from guaranteed for injury only to a full guarantee. Smith is entrenched as Seattle’s centerpiece player this season, but no guarantees are in place for 2025. Considering a new coaching staff is now in place, the former second-round pick will likely need to prove himself again to secure a place on Seattle’s 2025 squad.
The Seahawks had Smith at just $3.5MM (plus incentives) in 2022, when he beat out Drew Lock to replace Russell Wilson. Smith’s Comeback Player of the Year showing produced a 9-8 record and he set a franchise record with 4,282 passing yards. Smith led the NFL with a 69.8% completion rate that year. In 2023, Smith’s completion rate dropped to 64.7, and his yards per attempt fell a bit — from 7.5 to 7.3 — as well. QBR still placed Smith 14th last season and seventh in 2022.
Smith will also turn 34 in October; he is running out of time to capitalize on his newfound value. But the Seahawks have him on an extraordinarily team-friendly pact. The ex-Jets draftee is essentially on his own tier, forming a lower middle class between the Mayfield-Carr-Jones level and the Gardner Minshew–Sam Darnold stopgap plane. Smith sits as the NFL’s 20th-highest-paid passer, with three others — Trevor Lawrence, Jordan Love and Tua Tagovailoa — leapfrogging him by a monster margin thanks to joining the expanding $50MM-per-year club this summer.
Now holding final say after Pete Carroll‘s ouster, GM John Schneider can evaluate Smith’s fit in Ryan Grubb‘s offense before making a call. A potential extension could come to pass if Smith shows early progress under the former Washington Huskies play-caller, but a deal ahead of Smith’s age-35 season in 2025 would be highly unlikely to land on the top tier among QBs.
For now, the Wilson successor remains locked into a starting job — as the Seahawks passed on first-round QBs in 2023 and ’24 — and is poised to aim at improving his situation this season.
Arden Key’s PED Suspension Overturned
A year after signing a four-year Titans extension, Jeffery Simmons has added a piece of reporting to his resume. The sixth-year Titans defensive lineman alerted X followers that Arden Key‘s suspension will not come to pass.
In late July, reports came down that the Tennessee edge rusher received a six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug policy. In a rare development, the ban has been overturned on appeal. ESPN.com’s Turron Davenport confirms Simmons’ offering, and the Titans will be eligible to use Key for the season’s first six games.
[RELATED: Assessing Titans’ 2024 Offseason]
This will both keep a Titans starter in the mix and protect Key’s guarantees. While appeal processes can lead to reduced suspensions, PED bans are not commonly reversed. This represents a win for the Titans, who have Key on a three-year deal worth $21MM. The free agent pickup started nine games last season and is on track to be Tennessee’s top Harold Landry edge sidekick this year.
Signing early during the 2023 free agency period after playing for three teams from 2020-22, Key notched six sacks and 12 quarterback hits in his Titans debut. The former Raiders third-rounder and Jaguars and 49ers supplementary rusher has a 6.5-sack season — with the 2021 49ers — on his resume as well. Key, 28, struggled to find a role with the Raiders but has offered belated production elsewhere. The Titans need more of it soon.
The Titans have run into steady trouble finding edge help opposite Landry. From Jadeveon Clowney to Cameron Wake to Vic Beasley to Bud Dupree, Tennessee has been unable to staff this position since acquiring Landry in the 2018 second round. The team also lost versatile pass rusher Denico Autry in free agency, seeing him join off-ball linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair with the Texans. Tennessee needs Key, who was part of GM Ran Carthon‘s first FA crop, to provide stability.
Rashad Weaver (5.5 sacks in 2022, none last year) loomed as Key’s replacement. The former fourth-round pick can slide back into a rotational role on the heels of this news.
NFC East Notes: Belichick, Giants, CBs, Phillips, Cowboys, Commanders
Bill Belichick‘s media blitz will cover the 2024 season; the legendary coach has deals in place with the Manningcast, Inside the NFL and Underdog Fantasy Sports. Come 2025, however, the goal remains to land a third HC gig. The Cowboys and Eagles continue to be mentioned as possible landing spots, due to their strong rosters being closer to Super Bowl-level status, but the New York Daily News’ Pat Leonard believes the Giants — should they fire Brian Daboll — will make Belichick their first call. Leonard, during an appearance on The Carton Show, said GM Joe Schoen joins Daboll on the hot seat but added the GM having a past with Bill Parcells — Belichick’s boss with the Giants, Jets and Patriots (1996 only) — could leave the door open to working with Belichick. Schoen and Parcells debuted with the Dolphins, the former as a national scout, in 2008 and overlapped as coworkers for three years.
The Giants, who employed Belichick from 1979-90 and won their first two Super Bowls during his time as DC, came up as a team that would interest Belichick back in April. New York’s quarterback uncertainty may be an issue for a coach who will be 73 by the time he would land another opportunity, but it is not like the six-time Super Bowl-winning HC was in demand during this year’s cycle. A return to the Giants could be of interest if Belichick’s market is again limited.
Here is the latest from the NFC East:
- The Giants recently traded free agent pickup Jordan Phillips to the Cowboys, marking a rare deal between the teams. The trade involved a pick swap of 2026 sixth- and seventh-rounders changing sides, but NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo adds the selections will not change hands if Phillips fails to land on Dallas’ gameday roster for two 2024 games. This would not mean the veteran DT would need to make the Cowboys’ initial 53-man roster, but the longtime Bills lineman would need to be part of the active squad twice.
- Having a past with Schoen and Daboll in Buffalo, Nick McCloud is pushing Cor’Dale Flott for the Giants‘ boundary cornerback job opposite Deonte Banks. McCloud is also in the mix for the Giants’ slot position, per the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy. Fellow versatile defender Isaiah Simmons and rookie third-rounder Dru Phillips are also vying for the Big Blue slot post. Additionally, Tre Hawkins — a 2023 sixth-rounder who had won the Giants’ CB2 job last year only to be benched early in the season — is also battling Flott and McCloud for the perimeter gig, the Post’s Paul Schwartz adds.
- Jason Wright‘s eventual Commanders presidential successor will not oversee Adam Peters, according to ESPN.com’s John Keim. Washington’s next team president will be in charge of the business side only, with Peters only reporting to Josh Harris, who hired the ex-49ers exec to oversee his football operations in January. Wright, who interviewed for the Packers’ president job, is leaving after the season.
- The Commanders released Brandon McManus not long after the free agent signing was accused of sexual assault in a civil suit. With Washington cutting the kicker days before the second half of his $1.5MM signing bonus was due, a question loomed as to whether the team would pay it out. The team has since sent the kicker the other $750K, according to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio.
- The Cowboys are bringing in NBA analytics staffer Kathy Evans in as a consultant, per ESPN.com’s Seth Walder and Kevin Pelton. Evans has worked with the Washington Wizards and Toronto Raptors and is set for an interesting work schedule; Walton and Pelton note she is currently consulting for the Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Panthers’ Jonathon Brooks Expected To Start Season On NFI List
The Panthers made Jonathon Brooks this year’s first running back chosen, trading up (via the Colts) to No. 46 for the Texas product. No other team chose a back in the first two rounds, with Brooks going off the board 20 slots before the next RB (the Cardinals’ Trey Benson) was taken. While the Panthers have big plans for the rookie, an on-field role will need to wait.
Recovering from a torn ACL sustained in November 2023, Brooks has not practiced. He is also not particularly close to suiting up for a Panthers workout, according to The Athletic’s Joe Person, who indicates it is a “near certainty” the second-rounder will begin the season on the reserve/NFI list (subscription required).
Several weeks before Brooks was drafted, a report pegged his timetable as rather different than the one that actually took shape upon the talented ball-carrier joining the Panthers. Brooks was expected to be ready for training camp, but an early-August offering outlined an early-season window — potentially Week 3 or Week 4 — for the former Bijan Robinson backup to debut. The expected placement on the NFI list would mandate Brooks sits until at least Week 5.
Viewing the Giants as a threat to nab Brooks at No. 47, the Panthers traded up — using two fifth-rounders as ammo to climb six spots — to land their hopeful running back of the future. Brooks would certainly have been chosen earlier had he not suffered the serious knee injury, but the Panthers are early in a rebuild and are aiming to exercise caution with his recovery. As it stands, Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders are in place as Carolina’s top RBs.
Brooks’ rookie deal runs through the 2027 season, while Hubbard is in a contract year and Sanders’ contract features a fully guaranteed 2024 salary. A future in which neither veteran is on the 2025 team exists, clearing a path for Brooks. For now, however, a player who amassed 1,139 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in just 11 games last season will have approximately an 11-month recovery timetable (Brooks went down Nov. 11, 2023).
The Panthers also were undoubtedly intrigued by Brooks’ light carry workload in college, due to Robinson’s entrenchment atop the Longhorns’ depth chart. Brooks totaled just 51 carries between the 2021 and ’22 seasons, creating the possibility for a longer NFL career — once he completes his rehab effort. Once Brooks is activated, he will almost definitely be eased into action as Hubbard and Sanders remain in the picture.
John Lynch Addresses 49ers’ Interest In Keeping Brandon Aiyuk
Going nearly two days without a Brandon Aiyuk update has been out of character for this space, based on the news volume this situation has produced this summer. John Lynch is offering another one, discussing the sides’ enduring extension talks rather than any trade possibility.
The 49ers are believed to have trade parameters set with the Steelers, but that clearly seems like the organization’s backup plan. After all, it would be difficult to replace Aiyuk given the timing here. And the 49ers are gunning for an elusive Lynch-Kyle Shanahan-era Super Bowl title. Aiyuk represents a central part of that equation, and the 49ers are still trying to hammer out a deal. They ramped up negotiations again late last week. Though, they have been at this for several months.
“We started this early and for whatever reason haven’t been able to get it across the finish line,” Lynch said during an appearance on KNBR’s Murph and Markus show (via NFL.com). “That’s been frustrating, but the communication still has been really good both with Brandon and his agent, and we’re trying to figure out solutions.
“You know I’m always hopeful. I’m an optimistic person in nature, and I’m always hopeful that we’ll get there and get there soon. I can tell you, we feel the urgency to have him, the season’s approaching, and we have ample time.”
As the Steelers wait as the fallback option, the 49ers have upped their extension offer to the second-team All-Pro wide receiver. After a hyper-efficient 2023 season, Aiyuk has seen the receiver market shift once again. The fifth-year player has placed his value considerably higher than the 49ers’ assessment, but it does seem the gap has narrowed. Would the 49ers really trade their best outside receiver at this juncture on their timeline because of the small value gap that remains?
Lynch did indicate he wished he knew what Aiyuk’s holdup is, as the wideout’s slow-moving talks have dominated 49ers coverage this year. The eighth-year San Francisco GM did discuss Aiyuk in trades during the draft, but this is not the first time since the negotiations began that Lynch expressed hope Aiyuk would remain a 49ers in the long term.
Although the team agreed to deals with George Kittle and Deebo Samuel early in camp (2020, 2022), they reached resolutions with Nick Bosa and Jimmy Garoppolo just before the season. The 49ers still have more than three weeks before Week 1, though Aiyuk would presumably need some practice reps in advance of the Jets matchup in order to begin the season as a full-time player. Shanahan said this week he trusts the receiver to be ready, however, and Aiyuk has attended meetings during his hold-in.
“We love BA as a player; I think you see it every time he goes out there representing the Niners,” Lynch said. “He’s a guy we traded up for in the first round back in the ’20 draft. I remember doing it from my guest house during the covid times, and we’re fortunate to have added him to our squad, and we’d really like to keep him around. So we’ll see how it goes.”
Aiyuk, 26, is believed to have wedged the Patriots and Browns out of the mix. Although the Steelers’ offensive situation is not on the 49ers’ level and does not feature a surefire long-term QB option, Aiyuk looks to have approved Pittsburgh as a destination. The Steelers might be waiting a bit, however, as Lynch sounds committed to taking the time necessary to complete an extension.