Browns Taking Methodical Approach With Deshaun Watson’s Recovery
Starting just six games for the second straight season, Deshaun Watson played only 383 snaps — four fewer than his suspension-shortened 2022. The Browns have received an alarmingly low return on the historically expensive trade with the Texans, but the contract they were required to authorize in order to win the 2022 sweepstakes continues to tie the team to the former Pro Bowler.
Going into season three of that five-year, $230MM guaranteed deal, the Browns are bringing their quarterback along slowly. Watson suffered a fractured shoulder socket and a partially torn labrum last season. He is not yet a full participant in the team’s offseason program, but the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot notes the eighth-year QB threw in front of the media for the first time this week.
Watson, 28, participated in individual drills and threw to receivers during the practice portions not involving a defense. Jameis Winston took the reps in seven-on-seven and 11-on-11 periods, Cabot adds. The team is gradually bringing its high-priced passer along, with Kevin Stefanski indicating (via the Akron Beacon Journal’s Chris Easterling) Watson is not throwing at every OTA session. Stefanski said Watson is throwing every other day during OTAs, though the fifth-year Cleveland HC noted that is expected to change at next month’s minicamp.
“He threw the ball down the sideline, a vertical throw today, and that’s one I hadn’t seen from him a lot,” new Browns OC Ken Dorsey said, via Cabot. “We haven’t pushed him to do it, so that was good to see. The more he grows and feels comfortable with it, the more you’ll start seeing those things get ramped up more and more.”
The Browns had played games without Watson prior to his season-ending shoulder injury last year, with the likes of P.J. Walker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson making starts. Watson’s shoulder trouble, a micro tear of his rotator cuff, ultimately leading to a Nov. 21 surgery, preceded Joe Flacco‘s stunning resurgence. Watson also suffered a high ankle sprain last season. The team booked a playoff berth despite missing its starting QB, its top three tackles and Nick Chubb. Flacco is now in Indianapolis, indicating he was surprised Cleveland did not re-sign him, and Winston is the Browns’ Watson insurance policy.
While this certainly represents a pivotal year for the Browns and Watson, the team is still tied to the former Texans standout through 2026. Unlike last year, the Browns have not restructured Watson’s contract. That places what would be a record-smashing $63.77MM cap number on Cleveland’s cap sheet. No player has ever brought a $45MM cap charge in a season. Three-plus months away from Week 1, the Browns, Cowboys (Dak Prescott) and Broncos (part one of Russell Wilson‘s dead money) are in line to move past that benchmark. Barring a restructure, Watson’s cap number would top both players this season.
Watson’s surgery was to require a six-month recovery timetable. Shortly beyond that point, this process will be one to monitor as the Browns attempt to finally enjoy an extended run of quality QB play with their hired gun.
The Wide Receiver Market’s Evolution During Rookie-Scale Era
Jaylen Waddle‘s Dolphins extension includes a franchise record in guaranteed money. It also came during an offseason in which Tyreek Hill angled for (and received) an adjustment to a contract that had previously paced the NFL in wide receiver AAV — at $30MM per year.
Five players reached or surpassed $30MM per year in 2024, and the Justin Jefferson windfall raised the bar for former college teammate Ja’Marr Chase, whose 2024 triple-crown season jacked up the price on a Bengals extension. After Hill entered the 2024 offseason as the only $30MM-per-year receiver, Chase moved the market to $40MM per annum in 2025.
On that note, here is a look at where the WR market has climbed during the rookie-scale era, which has set a firm structure on when teams could negotiate with players. This is how the top wideout salary has evolved since the 2011 CBA was ratified:
August 20, 2011
- Larry Fitzgerald signs seven-year, $113MM Cardinals extension
The eventual 17-year veteran played four seasons on this deal before reworking it ahead of the 2015 season
March 14, 2012
- Calvin Johnson signs seven-year, $113.45MM Lions deal
The Hall of Fame talent pushed the receiver AAV bar to $16.21MM, finishing his career on this contract four seasons later
March 8, 2016
- Johnson’s retirement bumps Bengals‘ four-year, $60MM A.J. Green extension (September 11, 2015) to top of market
February 27, 2017
- Steelers give Antonio Brown four-year, $68MM extension
Brown played two seasons on this deal before being traded to the Raiders in March 2019
August 27, 2018
- Giants sign Odell Beckham Jr. to five-year, $90MM extension
Beckham played four-plus seasons on this extension, being traded to the Browns in March 2019. Cleveland cut OBJ midway through the 2021 campaign.
July 31, 2019
- Michael Thomas signs five-year, $96.25MM Saints extension
Thomas spent four seasons on this contract, battling injuries before signing a reworked Saints deal in March 2023
September 7, 2019
- Falcons hand Julio Jones three-year, $66MM extension
Jones played out this contract, which the Falcons traded to the Titans in June 2021
September 8, 2020
- Cardinals give DeAndre Hopkins two-year, $54.5MM extension
Months after acquiring Hopkins via trade, the Cardinals added guaranteed money to the All-Pro’s through-2022 Texans extension. This pushed the position’s AAV ceiling to $27.25MM, which set up the 2022 offseason’s developments. Hopkins played three seasons on this deal, being released in May 2023.
March 17, 2022
- Raiders acquire Davante Adams in tag-and-trade transaction with Packers, authorize five-year, $140MM extension
March 23, 2022
- Dolphins obtain Tyreek Hill via trade from Chiefs, hand over four-year, $120MM deal
April 24, 2024
- Amon-Ra St. Brown signs four-year, $120.01MM Lions extension
April 25, 2024
- A.J. Brown tops the St. Brown deal with three-year, $96MM Eagles accord
June 3, 2024
- Justin Jefferson receives four-year, $140MM Vikings extension
March 16, 2025
- Ja’Marr Chase tops his former LSU teammate with a four-year, $161MM Bengals deal
Packers’ Eric Stokes Addresses Injury Trouble; Zach Tom, Tucker Kraft Rehabbing Pec Tears
Injuries have largely defined Eric Stokes‘ NFL career thus far. The Packers have seen their 2021 first-round pick miss 21 games over the past two seasons; the Lisfranc injury the cornerback sustained in 2022 is at the root of the availability issues.
Once Stokes recovered from his foot issue, hamstring trouble hindered him for most of last season. Stokes began the season late thanks to multiple hamstring setbacks during the summer. The Packers ended up placing the three-year veteran on IR twice — both times due to hamstring trouble. The team predictably declined the former No. 29 overall pick’s fifth-year option earlier this month.
Now in a contract year, the oft-injured starter will aim to shake the lingering injury trouble and attempt to boost his value ahead of free agency — or a potential Packers extension. Stokes, who underwent knee and foot surgeries following his midseason 2022 setback, views the 2022 foot setback as the catalyst for his ensuing health issues.
“It was dealing with everything from the foot injury that I had,” Stokes said, via the Green Bay Press-Gazette’s Ryan Wood. “It was bouncing back from that. It’s crazy how everything is connected in your body to where if one area is weak, the other parts of your body will try to take control, or put more workload on it. So that’s what pretty much was going on. My hamstring was taking on so much workload that it pretty much kept messing up.”
Stokes, who blazed to a 4.25-second 40-yard dash clocking as a prospect in 2021, displaying starter-level form would certainly boost the Packers’ cause. Matt LaFleur said Stokes looks in his best form as a Packer. The team traded Rasul Douglas to the Bills at last year’s deadline and turned to former seventh-rounder Carrington Valentine opposite Jaire Alexander. Of course, Alexander also missed much of last season due to injury. Former Giants sixth-rounder Corey Ballentine ended up starting six games. Both former Day 3 picks are still on Green Bay’s roster.
The Packers re-signed slot corner Keisean Nixon in March but did not make a notable addition on the outside (beyond seventh-rounder Kalen King), keeping the door ajar for Stokes, who started 23 games over his first two seasons. Stokes’ health figures to be a key variable for the Packers, who have Alexander signed to the current top cornerback deal (four years, $84MM).
Elsewhere on the injury front in Green Bay, right tackle Zach Tom and tight end Tucker Kraft are rehabbing pectoral tears. Neither regular is participating in the team’s OTA sessions, but training camp returns are in play.
Tom has a better chance of being available, having suffered his tear in April. Kraft, however, sustained his pec injury less than three weeks ago. That would put the second-year pass catcher as a clear candidate to start camp on the active/PUP list. Adding to an interesting spring of chest injuries, LaFleur — per SI.com’s Bill Huber — is also rehabbing a pec tear sustained while lifting weights.
It might still be optimistic for either player to be ready in time for camp. Tom said his surgery calls for an eight- to 12-week recovery timetable. Undergoing the operation in late April, the third-year tackle said he hopes to return by “at least” mid-August. Tom showed promise last season, starting 19 games at right tackle and grading as Pro Football Focus’ No. 15 overall tackle.
The Packers moved Stokes from the active/PUP list to the reserve/PUP, which sidelines players for at least four games, last year. Tom has a clear path to keeping his RT job, even with the team’s additions of Andre Dillard and first-rounder Jordan Morgan. Kraft operated as a complementary option to Luke Musgrave during the duo’s rookie season.
Dolphins, Jaylen Waddle Agree On Extension
10:00pm: Waddle’s 2024 and 2025 base salaries are fully guaranteed, and Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio relays the Dolphins are giving their younger 1,000-yard receiver early security for 2026. Waddle’s ’26 base salary ($16.6MM) will shift from an injury guarantee to a full guarantee in March 2025.
Adding to what is a player-friendly structure, the Dolphins will guarantee a sizable portion of Waddle’s 2027 base ($23.4MM) a year early too. By March 2026, $15.2MM of that ’27 salary converts from an injury guarantee to a full guarantee, Florio adds. The rest of the salary becomes fully guaranteed in March 2027. Waddle’s 2028 salary ($25.8MM) is nonguaranteed.
9:06am: The Dolphins picking up Jaylen Waddle‘s fifth-year option bought them another year on the extension front, and coming into Thursday, only one team in the fifth-year option era had extended a wide receiver with two years of rookie-contract control remaining. Miami will join Philadelphia in bucking this trend.
Waddle and the Dolphins are in agreement on a three-year deal worth $84.75MM, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. This deal, which had been on Miami’s radar for a bit, will come with a whopping $76MM guaranteed. With Waddle’s option exercised, this will tie the 2021 first-rounder to the Dolphins through the 2028 season.
[RELATED: Early Extensions For First-Rounders In Fifth-Year Option Era]
In terms of average annual value, Waddle’s $28.25MM number checks in fourth at wide receiver — between the 2022 deals given to Tyreek Hill and Davante Adams. While Waddle’s deal comes in south of the pacts given to A.J. Brown and 2021 draft classmate Amon-Ra St. Brown earlier this year in terms of AAV, it includes more in total guarantees than Hill received two years ago. Waddle’s $76MM guaranteed comes in behind only Brown ($84MM) and St. Brown ($77MM). It is not yet known how much the Dolphins are guaranteeing Waddle at signing.
This breaks with trends on multiple fronts. The Eagles struck early on a deal with ex-Waddle Alabama teammate DeVonta Smith, giving the slender target a three-year, $75MM extension earlier this offseason. In the option era (2014-present), that marked the first instance of a team extending a rookie-deal wideout with two seasons of control remaining. The Dolphins are wading into deeper waters by comparison, now employing two of the NFL’s top five highest-paid wideouts in Hill and Waddle.
Illustrating the increased value of the receiver market, the Dolphins join the Eagles, Buccaneers, Bears and Texans with two $20MM-per-year WRs. Though, only Philly and Miami have two wideouts at $20MM per annum through 2026.
Hill’s $30MM-per-year agreement, the position’s top number between March 2022 and April 2024, included a lofty final-year salary to prop up the AAV. Waddle’s accord, per NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo, does not contain any fluff to reach the $28.25MM-per-year figure. It will now be interesting to see if the Dolphins adjust their All-Pro wideout’s deal, which runs through 2026. While Hill’s contract carries that oft-referenced $30MM-per-year average, the future Hall of Famer’s guarantees run out by 2025. And Hill has long been viewed as unlikely to play on his 2026 base salary ($43.9MM), setting up another negotiation between the parties.
As for Waddle, he has joined Smith in providing quality WR2 work in a high-octane offense. The Dolphins, who slid down nine spots to help the 49ers add Trey Lance in 2021, traded a future first-round pick to climb from No. 12 to No. 6 for Waddle in that draft. They ended up with an instant weapon, albeit one that dropped into a No. 2 role once the team acquired Hill in 2022.
Waddle, 25, has ripped off three straight 1,000-yard seasons to start his career. His 3,385 receiving yards through three seasons rank 16th in NFL history. Though, that number sits third in his own draft class — behind St. Brown and Ja’Marr Chase. Waddle is, however, the first player in Dolphins history to start a career with three straight 1,000-yard seasons.
Although Waddle missed three games last season, he had only missed one contest over his first two years. In 17 games alongside Hill in 2022, Waddle totaled 1,356 yards and eight touchdown receptions. The younger of Miami’s two elite WR speedsters led the NFL with 18.1 yards per reception that season, playing a central role in Tua Tagovailoa‘s ascent under Mike McDaniel. Waddle’s 2.73 yards per route run ranks fourth in the NFL (among wideouts with 800-plus routes run) over the past two years, per ESPN.
The Dolphins have not yet extended Tagovailoa, but they are committing to his former Crimson Tide target early. That could certainly prove wise, given where the WR market could end up by offseason’s end.
The Vikings and Cowboys face the prospect of approaching or surpassing the $35MM-per-year mark for their top wideouts — Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb — and this Waddle extension will likely impact the 49ers’ talks with fellow 2020 first-rounder Brandon Aiyuk. The Bengals have some time with Chase, but seeing as three other receivers from the 2021 draft are now signed to second contracts, the price is rising for Cincinnati.
For Miami, it will be interesting to see how the team proceeds with Tagovailoa. The talented QB’s talks, which have already produced one rejected offer, remain the centerpiece storyline in this Dolphins offseason. A re-up beyond the $50MM-plus going rate will change the equation for the Dolphins, who now have both Tagovailoa’s top weapons locked up long term. While the team acted early with Waddle, Tagovailoa is in a contract year.
The Colts are believed to have targeted Waddle in Jonathan Taylor trade talks with the Dolphins last year, but GM Chris Grier predictably shot down that ask. Less than a year later, Waddle is tied to the Dolphins for five more seasons. Dolphins’ decision with the fifth-year veteran will overshadow its other moves, though this Waddle pact continues an impactful offseason on the receiver front and will impact other teams conducting WR extension talks.
Bengals, Tee Higgins Have Not Discussed Extension Since Early 2023
Although the “deadlines spur action” disclaimer applies, no signs point to the Bengals reaching an extension with Tee Higgins by the July deadline. Higgins stands alone among this year’s tagged contingent, as the seven franchise players and transition-tagged Kyle Dugger have since been locked up long term.
With Ja’Marr Chase the priority for the Bengals at wide receiver, Higgins resides in limbo. The former second-round pick has been there a while. The Bengals did not approach $20MM per year when they last negotiated with Higgins’ camp. Those talks transpired more than a year ago, with ESPN.com’s Ben Baby indicating the parties have not resumed negotiations since they broke off.
Going more than a year without talking terms covers most of Higgins’ time as an extension-eligible player. The Clemson alum became eligible for a long-term deal in January 2023. As it stands, the Bengals may be in the early stages of a rental arrangement.
Higgins requested a trade in March but said later he expects to play this season with the Bengals. Not exactly a team known for coming off its position — as the Jonah Williams and Trey Hendrickson situations recently remind — the Bengals could be interested in a multiyear rental setup.
The Bengals have Higgins tied to a $21.8MM franchise tag. Higgins, 25, has not signed his franchise tender and joins Chase in staying away from Bengals workouts. It should not be expected Chase’s sidekick resurfaces anytime soon. Jessie Bates‘ 2022 run on the franchise tag involved the standout safety staying away well into training camp; Higgins and Bates share an agent. The fifth-year receiver cannot be fined for a failure to report due as long as he refrains from signing his tender.
Should Higgins and the Bengals not come to terms by July 15, the sides cannot resume negotiations until season’s end. The Bengals would have the option of re-tagging Higgins, at 120% of his 2024 salary, in 2025. That would make for an interesting plan, as receiver salaries skyrocket — to the point Chase should be in commanding position when this year’s round of deals wrap. This would certainly not go over well with Higgins, who would be denied multiple key windows to capitalize on his earning potential. That said, the Bengals could retain their WR2 for $26.2MM in 2025.
That would be a lofty cap number, especially as Joe Burrow‘s cap hit spikes from $29.6MM to $46.2MM, but the Bengals are projected to hold — several months out, at least — more than $45MM in cap space next year. Going by the pace of these negotiations and the statuses of Burrow and Chase, the prospect of Higgins being cuffed once again should not be discounted.
With Amon-Ra St. Brown, A.J. Brown and Jaylen Waddle signing extensions, Higgins’ price stands to rise. Even if Higgins could be on track for a second-tier WR contract, this year’s early deals will help his cause — whenever he enjoys the chance to negotiate. The Bengals not going near $20MM per year in 2023 would suggest the sides would not be close now, especially after Higgins’ underwhelming 2023 (656 receiving yards, five touchdowns).
The Bengals’ history with the franchise tag furthers evidence Higgins is highly unlikely to be extended this year. Prior to Higgins, Cincinnati has tagged 10 players since the tag’s debut in 1993 — Bates, A.J. Green, defensive end Michael Johnson, kickers Mike Nugent and Shayne Graham, tackle Stacy Andrews, defensive lineman Justin Smith, running back Rudi Johnson, wideout Carl Pickens, D-tackle Dan Wilkinson); only two (Johnson, Pickens) signed an extension with before that year’s deadline. The Johnson deal transpired back in 2005. (Nugent also circled back to an extension the following year.) While Higgins is obviously a central piece in the Bengals’ Super Bowl quest, his 12-plus-month negotiating wait continues.
Ben Johnson Addresses Decision To Stay With Lions
For a second straight offseason, Ben Johnson exited the coaching carousel to keep his offensive coordinator post in Detroit. After being viewed as the leader for the Panthers’ HC job in 2023, Johnson had been in position as the frontrunner to replace Ron Rivera with the Commanders.
Shortly after the NFC championship game, Commanders brass received word — while en route to Detroit to interview Johnson and Lions DC Aaron Glenn — the two-year Detroit play-caller was once again bowing out of a coaching pursuit. Johnson is not believed to have received a raise this time around; his Lions deal still runs through 2025. But the selective candidate will undoubtedly gauge the HC openings come 2025.
“I’m not gonna do it just to do it,” Johnson said (via ESPN.com’s Eric Woodyard) of taking a coaching job. “I love what I’m doing right now. Love it. I love where I’m at. My family loves where we’re at. Love the people that we’re doing it with, so I’m not willing to go down the other path yet, unless I feel really good about how it’s gonna unfold.”
Johnson said (via The Athletic’s Colton Pouncy) he is eyeing a job that will allow for success en route to a second contract. Some candidates do not have the luxury of being as selective as Johnson has been, but the Matt Patricia Lions hire has been trending upward — just as the Lions have — in recent years.
As the Lions have climbed into a Super Bowl-contending position, moving closer to the NFL’s biggest stage than they had at any point in franchise history, Johnson has represented a central reason for the team’s ascent. Detroit’s offense has ranked in the top five in points and yardage in each of Johnson’s first two seasons at the controls, and Jared Goff‘s career has turned around to the point he is again back near the top of the QB salary hierarchy.
The Goff-Johnson partnership led to the Lions quarterback signing a four-year, $212MM extension. For at least one more season, Goff will work alongside the coveted assistant. Johnson, 38, will have a chance to impress once again. The young coordinator stepping off the route toward Washington surprised many, and the Commanders — who ended up submitting an offer to Mike Macdonald, ahead of his signing a six-year Seahawks contract — eventually hired Dan Quinn as a second-chance candidate.
It took Josh McDaniels a bit of time to re-emerge as an attractive HC candidate after he backed out of a Colts agreement. Johnson did not go that far down the road with the Commanders and Panthers, but his selective path could conceivably turn teams off. Though, another strong season from the Detroit offense will probably put the next batch of HC-needy teams in pursuit. Offensive play-callers remain the most popular hires in this NFL period.
“The longer you’re in the coordinator chair, it does nothing but help you and prepare you more for the next step if it ever comes down the pipe,” Johnson said. “Personally, I don’t feel like I’m hurting my opportunities or my abilities to be a head coach in the future, and I love what I’m doing right now.”
Vikings, LT Christian Darrisaw Begin Extension Talks
Vikings extension rumors still center around one of their 2020 first-round picks, but the final first-rounder from Rick Spielman‘s GM tenure is also now eligible for a big-ticket deal. Although Justin Jefferson is not yet signed, the Vikings have also begun talks with their 2021 first-round pick.
Christian Darrisaw has become one of the NFL’s better tackles, and he is now under contract through 2025 by virtue of Minnesota making the predictable call to exercise his fifth-year option. Although the Vikings have some time with Darrisaw, ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert notes the team has begun extension discussions with its fourth-year left tackle.
GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah‘s draft choices are not yet extension-eligible, but his predecessor left the team with two cornerstones. Jefferson looks to be angling for the NFL’s top non-quarterback contract, which could take the wide receiver market to or beyond $35MM per year. Darrisaw will likely be aiming at a top-market LT accord. The former No. 23 overall pick has been Minnesota’s LT starter since Week 6 of his rookie season.
No Pro Bowls appear on Darrisaw’s resume, but he has received quality reviews. ESPN’s run block win rate metric ranked the Virginia Tech product sixth in 2022; Pro Football Focus slotted him second among all tackles that season. PFF graded Darrisaw as the NFL’s eighth-best tackle last season. Set to turn 25 on Sunday, Darrisaw should be coming into his prime.
The Vikings are shifting their expenses around this offseason, having separated from Kirk Cousins after six years. But a $28.5MM dead money bill is still due this year because of the void years the team placed on its longtime QB1’s contract. Minnesota, however, will be clear of that charge by 2025, when the team will be building around J.J. McCarthy‘s rookie deal. With the No. 10 overall pick tied to a rookie contract through at least 2026, the Vikings have some opportunities to load up their roster around the Michigan prospect. The Vikings also have just one O-lineman (right tackle Brian O’Neill) signed to an upper-crust contract.
While Jefferson is tied to a fifth-year option for this season, the Vikings picking up Darrisaw’s option ($16MM) covers the 2025 campaign. Minnesota has some time with its blindside blocker, and Seifert adds nothing is viewed as imminent. Since the 2011 CBA brought the fifth-year option, the Vikings have never gone through with an extension for a first-rounder with two years of control remaining. Darrisaw is currently tied to a $2.48MM base salary.
Laremy Tunsil‘s $25MM-per-year deal leads left tackles, but the Lions gave Penei Sewell $28MM per year to introduce a new tier for the RT market. How the Buccaneers proceed with Tristan Wirfs will be pivotal as well. While the Vikings may not be keen on matching where the Bucs go for Wirfs, as the former Super Bowl starter is a two-time All-Pro, that extension moving the market would pertain to Minnesota’s Darrisaw talks. For now, the fourth-year lineman is clearly in the NFC North club’s long-term plans.
Giants Add Incentives To WR Darius Slayton’s Contract
Darius Slayton‘s return to Giants practice looks to have ended a brief contract squabble. While the team’s top wide receiver during the Daniel Jones era has not secured an extension, the Giants did make a move that led to his return to practice.
The team added incentives to Slayton’s contract, with the wideout confirming (via the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy) that helped lead him to show for voluntary workouts. No additional guarantees come with these incentives, per SNY’s Connor Hughes, but the prospect of additional cash was enough to bring the sixth-year wideout to OTAs.
More specifically, the Giants added $650K in incentives to Slayton’s contract, ESPN.com’s Field Yates tweets. The team previously included $1.5MM in incentives for Slayton in 2024; that number is now at $2.15MM. The Giants have Slayton going into the second season of a two-year, $12MM deal.
The additional incentives mark an interesting step for the parties, seeing as this Giants regime forced Slayton into a pay cut on his rookie deal less than two years ago. But Slayton and this Joe Schoen-led front office had been in talks about a resolution for a few weeks now.
Drafted during the Dave Gettleman GM years, Slayton has helped the Giants after the team made some mistakes on the receiver front. The Golden Tate signing underwhelmed in 2019, and the 2021 offseason — which featured a disastrous Kenny Golladay contract and a Kadarius Toney first-round misfire — set the team back at the position. Amid the missteps around him, Slayton has led the Giants in receiving in four of the past five seasons. Though, he has never topped 800 yards in a single campaign.
While the Giants made an interesting offer to the Patriots in hopes of adding an eventual Jones replacement (Drake Maye), they instead used the No. 6 overall pick to acquire a pass catcher (Malik Nabers) poised to supplant Slayton as the team’s top wideout. Slayton now resides as a Gettleman-era investment — albeit one Schoen re-signed in 2023 — in a receiver cadre otherwise flooded with Schoen pickups. The team has 2023 third-rounder Jalin Hyatt and 2022 second-rounder Wan’Dale Robinson in the fold, joining other players acquired under Schoen — Allen Robinson and ex-Schoen/Brian Daboll Bills pieces Isaiah Hodgins and Isaiah McKenzie.
This bevy of options, Slayton’s arrival under Gettleman and his contract-year status could conceivably make him a trade chip — depending on how Hyatt and Robinson continue to develop — before this year’s November deadline. The Giants, however, have continued to back Jones and appear more likely than not to see Darren Waller retire. Having a proven wideout option to help a quarterback who has never exactly been blessed with reliable receiving casts makes sense. For the time being, Slayton is moving forward with the team that drafted him five years ago.
Texans Sign Round 2 T Blake Fisher, Wrap Draft Class Deals
Trading out of the first round weeks before the draft, the Texans completing that swap with the Vikings left their second-rounders as the top prizes in their latest draft class. Houston now has both those draftees under contract.
No. 59 overall pick Blake Fisher finished out the Texans’ rookie signings, with KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson noting the tackle prospect agreed to terms on his four-year contract. Fisher will check in behind established veterans Laremy Tunsil and Tytus Howard as he begins his pro career.
Second-round picks continue to make gains on the guarantee front. Wilson reports 4% of Fisher’s 2026 base salary will be guaranteed. An incremental gain, but one that continues to move the bar for Round 2 draftees. Illustrating the progress, no player drafted past No. 49 last year received any Year 3 salary guarantees.
Houston drafted Georgia cornerback Kamari Lassiter with a pick obtained from Minnesota but added Fisher with its own second-round selection. Fisher has begun competing for a role on the Texans’ offensive line. He spent the past two years at right tackle with Notre Dame, converting from the left side. With Tunsil entrenched on C.J. Stroud‘s blind side, routes to Fisher seeing early playing time will form elsewhere — barring injury.
Injuries, however, have been an issue for the Texans up front. They played without Howard, who signed a three-year extension last July, for most of the 2023 season. Tunsil missed three games and is less than three years removed from a 2021 season in which he suited up for only five contests. The Texans also ran into durability trouble at center and guard last year, creating a need for depth at the very least.
Fisher helped the Fighting Irish to 39.1 points per game — second in the storied program’s history — and left school after his junior season, opting out of the Sun Bowl to prepare for the draft. The Texans chose Fisher four spots ahead of Roger Rosengarten (No. 62, Ravens) and Kingsley Suamataia (No. 63, Chiefs), but this trio checked in as second-tier prospects in a deep tackle class.
The Texans have 2022 first-rounder Kenyon Green back in the mix for the left guard job, and the team did not re-sign Josh Jones or George Fant this offseason. This setup would point Howard back to tackle, but the team has used the 2019 first-rounder at guard in multiple seasons — including throughout his limited 2023. That would potentially represent an option, should Fisher prove ready for early playing time.
With the full group signed, here is how Houston’s 2024 draft class looks:
- Round 2, No. 42 (from Vikings): Kamari Lassiter (CB, Georgia) (signed)
- Round 2, No. 59: Blake Fisher (T, Notre Dame) (signed)
- Round 3, No. 78 (from Seahawks through Commanders and Eagles): Calen Bullock (S, USC) (signed)
- Round 4, No. 123 (from Browns through Texans): Cade Stover (TE, Ohio State) (signed)
- Round 6, No. 188 (from Raiders through Patriots and Vikings): Jamal Hill (LB, Oregon) (signed)
- Round 6, No. 205: Jawhar Jordan (RB, Louisville) (signed)
- Round 7, No. 238 (from Saints): Solomon Byrd (EDGE, USC) (signed)
- Round 7, No. 247: Marcus Harris (DT, Auburn) (signed)
- Round 7, No. 249: LaDarius Henderson (G, Michigan) (signed)
49ers Extend WR Jauan Jennings
With the deadline for restricted free agents to sign their tenders nearing, the 49ers and Jauan Jennings will move to a different contractual phase. The parties are done with the RFA process thanks to a Wednesday extension agreement.
San Francisco’s No. 3 wide receiver agreed to terms on a two-year deal worth up to $15.4MM, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter reports. Of that total, $10.5MM is guaranteed. This effectively represents a one-year bump for Jennings, who was tied to the 49ers via a second-round RFA tender ($4.89MM) for 2024. The team has since announced the deal.
[RELATED: 49ers ‘Past’ Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk Trade Talks]
Considering the uncertain futures of Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, this Jennings agreement — coming after the Ricky Pearsall first-round selection — could be important in the 49ers’ post-2024 plan. This will keep a key role player in the fold beyond this season, and with rumors about an Aiyuk-or-Samuel decision beyond 2024 — when Samuel, Brock Purdy, George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey will be in contract years — Jennings is now in place on a modest deal.
A former seventh-round pick, Jennings has made some pivotal contributions to the 49ers’ cause. He caught two second-half touchdown passes from Jimmy Garoppolo to clinch a Week 18 win over the Rams in 2021, ensuring the 49ers would qualify for the playoffs. Considering what that San Francisco edition still had in the tank, those proved to be crucial regular-season sequences. Jennings is now better known for both throwing and catching a touchdown in Super Bowl LVIII. The auxiliary performer, a high school quarterback who saw some QB action at Tennessee as well, hit McCaffrey on a well-executed trick play in the first half and caught a TD from Purdy to give the 49ers a fourth-quarter lead.
Jennings, 26, plays a key role in the 49ers’ dominant ground attack as well. Pro Football Focus rated the fifth-year veteran as the league’s third-best run-blocking wideout last season. While Jennings rarely works as a starter, he has been a regular during one of the best periods in 49ers history. The 6-foot-3 performer played 489 offensive snaps in 2022 and 361 (in 13 games) last season. Jennings totaled 35 receptions for 416 yards in 2022 and added 265 yards on 19 grabs last season.
The 49ers have Aiyuk going into a fifth-year option season and Samuel signed through 2025 on a three-year, $71.55MM deal. Trade talks involving both players transpired during the draft, with teams believing the 49ers wanted a mid-first-round pick for Aiyuk. Samuel generated talks on Day 2, and the prospect of the 49ers paying the younger player and trading their 28-year-old run-after-catch dynamo has entered the equation. Though, Aiyuk talks have not progressed too far as of yet.
For now, the 49ers have an imposing quartet of receivers to throw at defenses. As Pearsall develops, the team has one of the NFL’s top duos. Jennings, as today’s agreement shows, still factors in prominently to the defending NFC champions’ big picture.