WR Diontae Johnson Interested In Panthers Extension
The Steelers and Panthers agreed to swap contract-year players. The higher-profile piece included in the March trade went to Carolina, which acquired Diontae Johnson. Donte Jackson is now in Pittsburgh, joining Johnson as a walk-year player on a new team.
Carolina has now paired Johnson’s Pittsburgh-constructed contract with Bryce Young‘s rookie deal. Johnson and Adam Thielen join rookie-contract wideouts Jonathan Mingo and Xavier Legette. After inking a two-year, $36.75MM deal before the 2022 season, Johnson may not need to see how this season goes before determining Charlotte could work for him long term.
[RELATED: Diontae Johnson Sought Trade From Steelers]
“Just gotta stay relaxed, just keep being humble, make my plays,” Johnson said, via Panthers Wire’s Anthony Rizzuti. “Help the team win the best way I can and my game will speak for itself. And if they feel like they want to extend me, then I’m all for it.”
Johnson’s contract timeline has proven interesting. He initially strolled into a walk year as the Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams contracts began a sea change in the receiver market. The Jaguars’ four-year, $72MM Christian Kirk proposal changed the market’s second tier as well, and a slew of Day 2 draftees in 2019 — Johnson, A.J. Brown, Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel, D.K. Metcalf — landed extensions. Johnson’s checked in between Kirk’s pact and the Brown-Metcalf-Samuel-McLaurin tier, averaging $18.35MM per year. He is now going into a contract year as the WR market is changing again.
Brown, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Justin Jefferson have surpassed Hill’s $30MM-per-year accord, and Hill joins CeeDee Lamb and Brandon Aiyuk in angling for a top-market contract. Courtland Sutton resides near the second tier; the Broncos’ top wideout is pushing for an adjustment as well. Johnson, who will turn 28 next month, can certainly aim for a contract north of $20MM per year. He might need to deliver a bounce-back season in Carolina to up his market.
Johnson has been tied to a slew of QBs during his career. Although Ben Roethlisberger will be a Hall of Famer, he was not at his best during Johnson’s Pittsburgh stay. Big Ben’s 2019 elbow injury ushered in a season of Mason Rudolph and Devlin Hodges, and Roethlisberger’s retirement brought in Kenny Pickett. The latter failed to justify the Steelers’ No. 20 overall investment, leading to a trade. Johnson has made do, with his crafty route running (with a drop penchant admittedly mixed in) aiding this lot of QBs. Sandwiching an 1,161-yard 2021 showing in Roethlisberger’s finale, Johnson totaled 923 yards (2020) and 881 (2022). The former third-round pick bettered his 2022 per-game average, notching 55.2 per contest — and catching five TD passes after famously being kept out of the end zone in 2022 — after returning from a hamstring injury last season.
The Panthers added Johnson and Legette to help round out Young’s aerial cast, which was thin beyond Thielen last season. Thielen’s three-year, $25MM contract features a guaranteed 2024 salary. The soon-to-be 34-year-old receiver’s 2025 money is nonguaranteed, giving the Panthers options. Another Johnson deal would align with Young’s rookie deal on a roster largely devoid of big-ticket contracts.
Carolina hired Dan Morgan as its GM this offseason. While Morgan did not have final say on the D.J. Moore and Robbie Chosen extensions earlier this decade, he was on staff when the Panthers authorized them. It will certainly be interesting to see if the Panthers move to extend Johnson before or during his contract campaign.
Giants To Add CB Tre Herndon
Following a string of one-year deals with the Jaguars, Tre Herndon will head elsewhere for the first time in his pro career. The Giants are signing the veteran cornerback Wednesday, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets.
Herndon spent the past six seasons with the Jaguars, working as the team’s slot corner in recent years. The Jags changed defensive coordinators this offseason and did not re-sign the experienced cover man. The Giants will add another slot piece to a team that has a few in the fold already.
The Giants had used Cor’Dale Flott in the slot for much of the 2022 and ’23 seasons, but they are planning to shift him to an outside role opposite Deonte Banks. The team drafted Andru Phillips in Round 3 with an eye on installing him in the slot, and Darnay Holmes remains in the mix after re-signing in March. Given the team’s slot-heavy CB outlook as of mid-June, Herndon represents an interesting addition.
Herndon, 28, signed one-year Jaguars deals in each of the past three offseasons. After the Jags did not bring Herndon back this year, he booked a tryout at the Giants’ minicamp this week, via the New York Daily News’ Pat Leonard. That performance sold the team’s coaching staff, which includes a new DC (Shane Bowen), on giving Herndon a chance.
A Jaguar dating back to team’s Jalen Ramsey–A.J. Bouye days, Herndon lasted through a few coaching staffs. Signed as a UDFA during Tom Coughlin‘s executive VP tenure, Herndon re-signed during Urban Meyer‘s year in charge and then stayed on during the Doug Pederson-Trent Baalke regime. As the team shifts to Ryan Nielsen as its defensive play-caller, a few pieces — from Ronald Darby to Darnell Savage to third-round pick Jarrian Jones — entered the fray. This left Herndon searching for a new home. The seventh-year CB will attempt to land a role with the Giants, who made a notable change at the position this offseason.
The Giants did not re-sign Adoree’ Jackson, who remains a free agent, and are confident Banks can fill his shoes as the top corner. As prices rise on New York’s payroll following deals for Daniel Jones, Dexter Lawrence, Andrew Thomas and Brian Burns, the team has an all-rookie-deal secondary in place. For the time being, that is expected to include Flott as the other outside CB starter. During OTAs, Phillips was viewed as a live candidate to commandeer Flott’s former slot role. Holmes represented insurance; Herndon adds a more proven presence.
Herndon played 481 defensive snaps last season — his most since a 1,016-snap 2020 — and Pro Football Focus rated him as a top-40 corner, with a poor run-defense grade affecting that placement. This marked a career-best showing, in PFF’s view, for the Vanderbilt alum. Though, the Jaguars reduced Herndon’s playing time over the season’s final six weeks, making it fairly predictable he would need to relocate to continue his career.
The 5-foot-11 defender played a regular role for the Jags’ 2022 playoff team and was viewed as an every-down player in the wake of Ramsey’s in-season 2019 departure. The Jags used Herndon as a frequent sub-package performer under Meyer and Pederson, and he now becomes the Giants’ most experienced DB.
Titans To Sign OL Geron Christian
The Titans devoted a top-10 pick to the tackle position, drafting an O-lineman (JC Latham) in Round 1 for a second straight year. Tennessee will still add another veteran to help fortify the spot, however.
Geron Christian agreed to terms with the Titans on Wednesday, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson reports. Christian spent last season with the Browns and Texans, being a nine-game Cleveland starter during a season in which the AFC North club lost both its starting tackles. This will reunite Christian with former Browns O-line coach Bill Callahan.
Christian marks the second former Callahan Cleveland charge to join the Titans this offseason. The team acquired Leroy Watson from the Browns in April. A former third-round pick, Christian has made 25 career starts. The former Washington draftee closed last season as Cleveland’s starting left tackle, with Jedrick Wills joining Jack Conklin and rookie RT fill-in Dawand Jones as sustaining a season-ending injury.
Christian, who went to training camp with the Dolphins before failing to make their 53-man roster, started the Browns’ final nine games and their wild-card outing in Houston. Pro Football Focus did not view Christian’s 2023 work fondly, though given how far down the depth chart the Browns needed to look at tackle last year, it is not exactly surprising their final LT option was inconsistent.
The Browns signed Christian after the Texans had released him from their practice squad in October. The Louisville alum combined for 14 starts from 2020-21, playing with Washington and Houston, initially changing teams after being waived in 2021. A rebuilding Texans team used the 320-pound blocker as a regular starter moving forward; the Chiefs slotted Christian as a backup in 2022.
Regarded as perhaps the NFL’s premier O-line coach, Callahan now has two of his recent pieces to help in Nashville. The Titans are expected to use Latham, 2023 first-rounder Peter Skoronski, free agent signing Lloyd Cushenberry and 2023 UFA pickup Daniel Brunskill as starters. Petit-Frere remains on his rookie contract, with fill-in starter Jaelyn Duncan also stands to be a right tackle option. Christian technically gives the Titans another option, but he has played left tackle for most of his NFL career. Still, the six-year veteran profiles as a candidate for a swing role in Brian Callahan‘s offense.
Kirk Cousins Expects To Be Full-Go ‘Well Before’ Week 1; Grady Jarrett Eyeing Training Camp Return
Thrust into an unusual situation following the Falcons’ scrutinized decision to draft Michael Penix Jr. eighth overall, Kirk Cousins is also in the final stages of rehab from his first significant NFL injury. The high-priced Atlanta QB is not quite recovered from his Achilles setback.
Cousins is close, however, and the 13th-year veteran said (via The Athletic’s Josh Kendall) he expects to be operating at full speed well before Week 1. In the meantime, the new Falcons passer has taken every snap with the team’s first-stringers during the offseason program.
The Falcons gave Cousins a four-year, $180MM deal that includes $100MM in practical guarantees. While they then made the unexpected move to draft Penix, no doubts about the team’s 2024 starter have surfaced. Cousins, who will turn 36 in August, is locked into that role. Although Penix took third-team reps — behind Taylor Heinicke — during the Falcons’ Tuesday minicamp practice, Kendall notes the Falcons expect the rookie to be the backup this season. Heinicke accepted a pay cut to remain with his hometown team, doing so before the team picked Penix.
The Vikings lost Cousins for the season on Oct. 29. While the durable QB had missed two starts during his Minnesota tenure, they came due to COVID-19 or the team resting starters in a season finale. The Falcons are betting on the immobile passer’s track record before he went down, and Cousins has called himself ahead of schedule; he previously did not expect to participate in OTAs or minicamp. Training camp will begin nearly nine months after the injury.
Cousins is the Falcons’ highest-profile player rehabbing an injury, but the team’s longtime defensive line anchor is also coming back from a season-ending malady. Grady Jarrett sustained an ACL tear on same day Cousins went down, missing the final nine games of Atlanta’s season. Unlike Cousins, Jarrett is not participating in Atlanta’s minicamp. Going into his 10th NFL season, Jarrett said he is targeting a return by training camp.
“That’s my goal,” Jarrett said, via the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Gabriel Burns. “Obviously with training camp, there’s always a ramp-up period. Mine might look a little different, but the bulk of it, my goal is to have most of my reps in and not too much special treatment on the side. That’s what I’m working for.”
It would certainly not surprise to see Jarrett begin camp on Atlanta’s active/PUP list, a designation that keeps players sidelined until they are ready to practice. A stay on the reserve/PUP list — a regular-season designation that costs players at least four games — appears unlikely. ACL tears affect players differently, and it has not been uncommon to see some midseason knee injuries lead to early-season absences the following year. But more than 10 months will have passed between Jarrett’s injury and the Falcons’ Week 1 game. It should be expected the veteran D-lineman will be available for Atlanta’s opener.
Jarrett, 31, is working in a third defensive system in three years. After Dean Pees‘ retirement, the Falcons moving on from Arthur Smith effectively ensured DC Ryan Nielsen would be a one-and-done in Georgia. Raheem Morris and fellow ex-Rams assistant Jimmy Lake are now running the show. Two seasons remain on Jarrett’s three-year, $49.5MM extension.
Jets Aiming To Let Haason Reddick Play Out Contract; Parties No Longer On Same Page?
The Jets-Haason Reddick partnership has certainly featured a rocky start. The recent trade acquisition has not shown for the team’s offseason program, and after Robert Saleh said he expected the veteran edge rusher at minicamp, Tuesday brought an unexcused absence from the mandatory workouts.
It is not surprising to see Reddick test his new team, seeing as his below-market contract led to the separation from the Eagles, but the Jets look to have seen the former first-round pick change his stance as the offseason progressed.
Reddick, who will turn 30 in September, is in the final season of a three-year, $45MM contract. After what is believed to have been a productive spring visit before the trade came to pass, the parties do not appear on the same page regarding this issue. A previous Jets-Reddick meeting, however, suggested they were.
The Jets had communicated to the former Cardinals, Panthers and Eagles sack artist they would not extend him this year, according to SNY’s Connor Hughes, with the sides believed to be in agreement Reddick would play out his deal and see about receiving his money from the Jets — or another team — in 2025. Reddick was believed to be on board with the plan, per Hughes, who notes the former Super Bowl starter had told Jets staffers he would attend both OTAs and minicamp. It appears the parties are no longer in lockstep on a plan.
While the Jets communicated to Reddick adjustments could be made to his current contract — potentially via incentives — Hughes adds they indicated no extension was coming this year. This is an interesting stance for the team, which gave up a third-round pick for the Pro Bowler, as it has two rookie-contract edge players (Jermaine Johnson, Will McDonald) and traded its other veteran piece (John Franklin-Myers) in an April salary dump.
It is understandable why Reddick would opt to force the issue; his contract is out of step with his production, which now includes four straight double-digit sack seasons. His dominant 2022 showing (19.5 total sacks, 3.5 coming in the playoffs) helped the Eagles to Super Bowl LVII and had them on the cusp of breaking the 1984 Bears’ single-season sack record. Reddick did not fare quite as well last season, but he still totaled 11 sacks. He has also seen his contract — already a below-market deal upon signing — further shift toward a team-friendly classification. Offseason extensions for Brian Burns and Josh Allen have bumped Reddick down to the NFL’s 19th-highest-paid edge defender.
Reddick is both subject to a $104K fine by skipping minicamp, and he forfeited a $250K workout bonus as well. The eighth-year vet could force the issue by continuing his holdout into training camp, but teams must fine non-rookie-contract players $50K per day for each training camp workout missed. That has largely removed holdouts from the equation, though Chris Jones and Zack Martin both succeeded — Martin via an immediate agreement, Jones via a monster 2024 payday — after holding out. A Reddick hold-in effort could be the next step here.
The Jets effectively swapped out Bryce Huff for Reddick, with the younger player now with the Eagles on a three-year, $51.1MM deal to place the four-year Jet among the handful of edge rushers now paid more than Reddick.
It would look odd if the Jets turned around and paid Reddick a market-value contract, seeing as Huff is four years younger. Though, the Jets are planning a three-down role for Reddick after having used Huff as a designated pass rusher of sorts. Reddick may well attempt to use the Jets’ plan against them; training camp represents the next stage of this developing saga.
Browns, Amari Cooper Discussing Contract; WR Not Present At Minicamp
When Amari Cooper signed his five-year, $100MM contract in March 2020, he stood as the NFL’s second-highest-paid wide receiver. Multiple market booms have changed his status, and the Browns veteran has tumbled well down the list at his position.
Cooper has joined the list of disgruntled wideouts opting to avoid mandatory minicamp. Kevin Stefanski said Tuesday (via NFL.com’s Nick Shook) the Pro Bowl receiver is away from the team with an unexcused absence. This follows CeeDee Lamb and Brandon Aiyuk‘s decisions to steer clear of their teams’ minicamps. Cooper will face a $102K fine by avoiding the Browns’ mandatory June workouts.
It is unsurprising to see Cooper staying away. Set to turn 30 next week, the former top-five pick is going into a contract year. Cooper has been Cleveland’s No. 1 wide receiver over the past two seasons, helping the Browns navigate an unstable quarterback situation. After the WR market boom of 2022 and this offseason’s developments, the perennial 1,000-yard target now sits as the NFL’s 20th-highest-paid wideout.
Stefanski confirmed the Browns have engaged in some dialogue regarding Cooper’s contract. GM Andrew Berry suggested earlier this offseason the 2022 trade pickup was on the extension radar. A new deal would both reward Cooper for his contributions since being acquired from the Cowboys and reduce his 2024 cap hit from its $23.78MM place. It would also help the Browns avoid a near-$8MM dead money sum stemming from void years. The team still has time on that front, as that penalty would only come if Cooper is not re-signed before the start of the 2025 league year.
Cooper totaled 1,160 receiving yards in 2022, boosting a Browns team that did not have Deshaun Watson for 11 games due to a suspension. He totaled a career-high 1,250 yards last season, aiding a squad that did not see Watson much and lost its top three tackles along with Nick Chubb. Cooper played a central role in Joe Flacco earning Comeback Player of the Year honors. Last year’s 1,000-yard showing marked the ex-Raider draftee’s seventh as a pro.
The Browns recently extended trade acquisition Jerry Jeudy, and while the ex-Bronco first-rounder’s AAV ($17.5MM) checks in south of Cooper’s number, the zero-time 1,000-yard receiver’s $41MM guarantee at signing sits sixth at the position. The Cowboys guaranteed Cooper $40MM up front when re-signing him in 2020, and that number looked better at the time. But the team passed on paying Cooper’s 2022 salary, sending him to the Browns before a salary guarantee vested. Dallas was prepared to cut Cooper absent a trade, but the Alabama alum has continued to produce.
Daily fines would come into play if Cooper were to consider a holdout. Teams cannot waive the fines of non-rookie-contract players who hold out, and although Chris Jones and Zack Martin staged holdouts last year, this has been a highly uncommon 2020s occurrence due to the CBA including language designed to curb the practice. Cooper holding in, a common route players have taken amid negotiations, would stand to be on the table.
The team still has time to take action on this front, though Cooper’s age offers a slight complication. He joins Tyreek Hill as WRs nearing their age-30 season angling for a contract adjustment. While the Dolphins have the future Hall of Famer tied to a deal that runs through 2026, Cooper entering a contract year makes this a more urgent matter for the Browns.
Broncos, WR Courtland Sutton At Stalemate
Courtland Sutton reported for the Broncos’ minicamp Tuesday. This will allow him to avoid a $102K fine, separating this situation from the CeeDee Lamb, Brandon Aiyuk and Amari Cooper matters. But Sutton continues to pursue a contract adjustment.
Nothing is imminent for the Broncos’ top wide receiver, who said (via the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson) his talks with the team — more than a month after this contract issue became known — are at a stalemate. Sutton’s four-year, $60MM contract runs through 2025. Only $2MM of the seventh-year veteran’s $13MM 2024 base salary is guaranteed; the rest of the money would become locked in shortly before Week 1.
The 6-foot-4 pass catcher, who underwent offseason ankle surgery, mostly watched during Denver’s first minicamp workout, per 9News’Mike Klis. Sutton, 28, said (via Tomasson) he gave brief consideration to skipping Denver’s minicamp but remains committed to the team, eyeing a hopeful ring of fame induction down the road. The Broncos drafted Sutton in the 2018 second round, and he has produced at points despite the the quarterback inconsistency that has come to define this franchise post-Peyton Manning.
“It was definitely something that was considered,” Sutton said (via Klis) of the prospect of missing minicamp. “Obviously, I’m here. I wanted to make sure it was known, yeah, I was upset about how the contract went about, how the conversation went about. How the stalemate has persisted. But I also wanted it to be know that I love ball.”
Sutton is believed to be angling for a raise, and while the Broncos accommodated Chris Harris with a pay bump to resolve an issue back in 2019, the latter had proven far more than his former practice adversary has. Harris, who made the 2010s’ All-Decade team, was also going into the final year of his contract when the Broncos gave him a raise. Sutton, whose lone 1,000-yard season came that year, having two years remaining on his deal complicates matters. As does the fact Sean Payton was not in Denver when the team extended him during the 2021 season.
Denver has resisted trade interest for Sutton, though the team finally gave in on Jerry Jeudy and unloaded the former first-rounder for fifth- and sixth-round picks. Teams called about the Broncos’ 2023 leading receiver before the draft, but Sutton remains the team’s receiver centerpiece. Under Payton, however, the team has added a few pieces — from 2023 second-rounder Marvin Mims, 2024 fourth-rounder Troy Franklin and free agent Josh Reynolds. Sutton and Tim Patrick are the only John Elway-era cogs left in the Broncos’ skill-position group.
The Broncos set a second-round asking price on Sutton last year, and while that was never likely to be met, the team has the SMU alum on a fairly favorable deal considering where the wide receiver market has gone since this deal was finalized. Sutton’s $15MM AAV now sits 26th at the position. Jeudy signed a Browns extension that checked in north of Sutton for AAV and included far more guarantees at signing ($41.6MM).
Several wide receiver contract situations remain unresolved as the offseason enters its final weeks. Sutton’s may qualify as a second-tier matter, but the Broncos are likely aiming to have him help Bo Nix during the first-rounder’s rookie year. Training camp will represent the next stage of this impasse.
“We are at a stalemate in a sense, but I have confidence and faith that the right thing will be done,” Sutton said, via Klis. “I hope that I am part of the bigger picture. I’ve been told that’s what the game plan is. I’ve also been told some other things. We’ll see what happens. I hope that I’m part of the game plan.“
Cowboys Audition CBs DeAndre Baker, Gareon Conley
Neither DeAndre Baker nor Gareon Conley‘s initial NFL runs lasted too long. Both first-round picks did not play a fourth NFL season, but each wound up in the UFL. Spring leagues have provided a springboard for second chances, and the Cowboys — who have led the way in value gained from the recent batch of American minor football leagues — are looking into both players.
NFL teams cannot sign UFL players until next week, as the merged league’s championship game is set for Sunday, but workouts are permitted this week. Several UFLers are receiving chances with NFL teams, and ESPN.com’s Todd Archer indicates the Cowboys are taking a look at Baker and Conley at their minicamp this week.
A 2017 Raiders first-round pick, Conley will turn 29 later this month. He has not played in an NFL game since Week 15 of the 2019 season. Conley spent the 2020 season on the Texans’ IR list. Houston had acquired Conley via trade from Oakland in October 2019. The Raiders had used the former No. 24 overall pick as a starter in every game that season leading up to the trade deadline but unloaded him for a third-round pick. This came early during the Jon Gruden-Mike Mayock years; Conley arrived during the Raiders’ final Reggie McKenzie-run draft.
Like Conley, Baker wound up with a second team after washing out early with the club that drafted him. An arrest led the Giants to waive Baker, a 2019 first-round pick, before the 2020 season. Robbery charges against the young cornerback ended up being dropped, and the Chiefs took a flier on the struggling defender. Baker played in 10 Chiefs games from 2020-21; the team waived him in August 2022. Baker allowed six touchdown passes as the closest defender in a 15-start rookie season.
Both Baker, 26, and Conley caught on with the D.C. Defenders before the inaugural UFL season. Conley intercepted two passes this season, while Baker landed on the All-UFL team last week. Neither player played in the XFL or USFL in 2023. The Cowboys have benefited considerably from the latter league, with both KaVontae Turpin and Brandon Aubrey becoming Pro Bowlers in their first seasons in Dallas. Aubrey earned first-team All-Pro recognition in his Cowboys debut.
Dallas is also working out the UFL’s tackles leader, Willie Harvey Jr., per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero. The St. Louis Battlehawks defender totaled 76 tackles, four sacks, two forced fumbles and nine tackles for loss this season. Harvey, 28, previously saw NFL time with the Browns from 2019-21, playing in just four games as a backup. Cleveland cut Harvey after its 2022 training camp. The Cowboys will see if Harvey’s UFL work has made him a better candidate for an NFL role.
Dolphins Sign Round 2 T Patrick Paul
As offensive line injuries have piled up for the Dolphins under Mike McDaniel, the team is again hoping for the best with Terron Armstead. The veteran left tackle has battled various maladies in Miami but has delivered quality play when available.
Armstead opted to return for a 12th NFL season, and the Dolphins have right tackle Austin Jackson signed long term as well. Jackson impressed last season but missed almost all of the 2022 campaign due to injury. This made the draft a key window for the team to invest up front, and the Dolphins did by using a second-round pick on Patrick Paul. The Day 2 investment is now signed.
The Dolphins announced they have come to terms with Paul on his second-round rookie deal, which will run through 2027. This year’s steady gains on the guarantee front will benefit Paul, whom the Dolphins chose 55th overall. Based on where the Texans went for Blake Fisher at No. 59, Paul stands to be the first player chosen 55th overall to see part of his Year 3 base salary guaranteed. Houston guaranteed 4% of its second-round tackle’s 2026 base.
Paul primarily played left tackle at Houston, which moved from the American Athletic Conference to the Big 12 ahead of his final college season. The talented blocker impressed regardless, finishing as a first-team All-Big 12 tackle a year after earning first-team All-AAC acclaim in 2021 and ’22. Second-team All-America honors poured in for Paul, who started 27 games at left tackle over the past two seasons. Paul also made three LT starts for the Cougars as a freshman in 2019.
Despite Paul’s college body of work, ESPN’s Scouts Inc. did not have him graded as a Day 2 prospect; he checked in 132nd on that list. The Dolphins disagreed, and Armstead’s run of injuries points to the rookie potentially being needed in 2024.
The team also may have the option of keeping Paul on the developmental track. Miami re-signed swing tackle Kendall Lamm to a one-year, $2.5MM deal this offseason. Lamm made eight starts last year, mostly filling in for Armstead, who missed seven games. With Armstead on a year-to-year track and Lamm a veteran backup, Paul has a clear path to being a Dolphins starter in the not-too-distant future.
Saints Working Out WR Russell Gage, S Roderic Teamer
As recent UFL players are emerging on the workout radar, NFL teams also use minicamp to occasionally audition veteran free agents. The Saints are doing so, bringing in a former Falcons regular looking to rebound.
Russell Gage‘s three-year, $30MM Buccaneers pact did not go well, and he missed all of last season with an injury. Gage excelled on his Falcons rookie contract, however, and the Saints will take a look at the NFC South lifer. The veteran slot receiver joins veteran safety Roderic Teamer as players working out at Saints minicamp, New Orleans.football’s Nick Underhill tweets.
A ruptured patellar tendon sustained last August knocked Gage out for the 2023 season. Brought in to complement Mike Evans and Chris Godwin after the Antonio Brown addition predictably ended poorly, Gage did not justify his contract in 2022, either. While Gage did make some contributions by posting a 426-yard, five-touchdown season in Tom Brady‘s finale, he did not match his best Falcons showings while attached to an eight-figure-per-year contract.
Gage’s 2022 numbers, however, came in 13 games; the former sixth-round pick missed time due to a hamstring injury. The Bucs still gave Gage a slight pay cut during the 2023 offseason, though the team increased his guarantee figure in the process. The team declined a 2024 Gage option this offseason, sending him to free agency.
With an Atlanta team that had seen extended Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley unavailability stretches during the early 2020s, Gage stepped in as a key Matt Ryan target. The LSU alum posted 786 yards and four touchdowns in 2020, teaming with Ridley while Jones battled a chronic hamstring issue, and added 770 yards and four scores in 2021 — as Ridley left the team midway through the season. The Saints will evaluate Gage’s form ahead of his age-28 season.
New Orleans released Michael Thomas after a spate of injuries and did not make a major addition to their wideout group this offseason. The team did add Equanimeous St. Brown and use a fifth-round pick on Bub Means, but the Chris Olave–Rashid Shaheed duo still leads the way in New Orleans. A.T. Perry also flashed during his rookie season. As the team shifts to a Klint Kubiak-run offense, more receiving help is on the radar.
Teamer, 27, has made 11 career starts. The former Chargers UDFA found a role with the Raiders, but the team moved on following a November DUI arrest. Teamer’s arrest came years after he incurred a four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. Teamer, however, is a New Orleans native who attended college at Tulane. His local team will see about a second chance.
The Saints roster a more acclaimed New Orleans native (Tyrann Mathieu) but released Marcus Maye this offseason. Jordan Howden, a 2023 fifth-round pick, operated as Maye’s primary replacement last season. A Teamer addition would undoubtedly be for depth purposes.