Diontae Johnson Sought Trade From Steelers
The Steelers have made a habit of moving on from starting wide receivers following their rookie contracts, regularly finding replacements in the draft. This assembly line, however, did feature an exception for Diontae Johnson, who signed an extension in 2022. But the Steelers wrapped Johnson’s tenure after five seasons by trading him to the Panthers.
Swapping out Johnson, 27, for Carolina cornerback Donte Jackson, Pittsburgh bailed on a player who led the team in receiving three times (2020-22) and one who displayed strong route-running chops. While some turbulence came along with the former third-round pick, the team has a need at receiver entering April.
[RELATED: Steelers Sign WR Quez Watkins]
Rumblings about a Johnson trade emerged around the Combine, and The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly indicates the talented pass catcher requested a trade (subscription required). Going into the final season on the two-year, $36.71MM extension he signed in summer 2022, Johnson will now count $10MM on Carolina’s cap and give Bryce Young a second veteran receiver to target alongside Adam Thielen.
It is unclear why Johnson wanted out, though the Steelers’ quarterback situation may well have played a role. Chosen in Round 3 out of Toledo, Johnson soon saw the Steelers’ QB fortunes change when Ben Roethlisberger suffered a season-ending elbow injury in September 2019. He showed potential with Mason Rudolph as a rookie, but Roethlisberger was a diminished version of himself upon returning in 2020. More limitations emerged in 2021, and the future Hall of Famer called it quits at season’s end. Drop issues notwithstanding, Johnson became Big Ben’s most trusted target following the elbow injury; he posted 144- and 167-target seasons in 2020 and ’21, posting a career-high 1,161 yards in Roethlisberger’s final season.
Kenny Pickett did not provide an upgrade. Johnson famously did not score a touchdown in 2022, going nearly two years between regular-season TDs. He added five TDs last year and averaged more yards per game (55.2) compared to 2022 but brought baggage stemming from comments and a dispute with safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. The five-year veteran also chirped at coaches during a rocky 2023 slate. Johnson was also criticized for showing little effort to recover a Jaylen Warren fumble during a game against the Bengals last season. A Johnson-Mitch Trubisky shouting match also took place in 2022, and the Steelers have closed the book on their partnership with the 5-foot-10 WR as they revamped their QB room around Russell Wilson and Justin Fields.
The Steelers have nabbed numerous starting wideouts on Day 2 of the draft during the Mike Tomlin–Kevin Colbert partnership — from Mike Wallace to Emmanuel Sanders to JuJu Smith-Schuster to Johnson to George Pickens — and it would certainly not surprise to see the team turn to the draft’s second day to address this spot once again. This is viewed as another deep receiver draft, and the Steelers have continually done well to staff this job. They need help alongside Pickens now, with Quez Watkins, Van Jefferson, Calvin Austin and gadget/returner addition Cordarrelle Patterson in the fold.
Mike Tomlin said the team had targeted Jackson, 28, in the past. The former second-round pick joins Joey Porter Jr. as the Steelers’ top corners. The team reduced its recent trade acquisition’s cap number as well. The sides agreed on a new deal that dropped Jackson’s 2024 cap number to $6MM, per OverTheCap’s Jason Fitzgerald, who adds the seventh-year corner will receive $4.75MM guaranteed. The Steelers already picked up Jackson’s $4MM roster bonus upon acquiring him.
The Jackson trade left $9.78MM in dead money on Carolina’s payroll; the team moved on from the corner two years after re-signing him to a three-year, $35.18MM contract. Pittsburgh’s Johnson trade left $5.83MM in dead money on its cap sheet. Both players’ contracts still expire after the 2024 season, though their new teams hold exclusive negotiating rights until March 2025.
NFC North Notes: Bears, Vikings, Reader
Coleman Shelton started every Rams game at center last season, and the former UDFA logged a few starts there during the 2022 season. The Bears gave Shelton only a one-year, $3MM deal, however. Already rostering guards Teven Jenkins and Nate Davis, the Bears may view Shelton as a backup. This is because Chicago acquired Ryan Bates from Buffalo. Given a Bears RFA offer sheet in 2022, Bates remains attached to that contract (four years, $17MM). He looks more likely to be the favorite for Bears center duties than Shelton, ESPN.com’s Courtney Cronin notes.
Bates, 27, does not have a notable history at center. At Penn State, he primarily played left tackle. The Bills used him primarily at guard, with Mitch Morse previously entrenched at center. Despite Buffalo matching the 2022 Chicago offer sheet, the team added two new guards — Connor McGovern, O’Cyrus Torrence — in 2023. Bates did not start a game for the Bills last season, but the ex-UDFA looks set to have a good shot at taking over at center for the Bears.
Here is the latest from the NFC North:
- The Bears’ four-year, $76MM Jaylon Johnson extension features an out in 2026. The deal calls for $10.6MM of Johnson’s $15.1MM 2026 base salary to be guaranteed for injury, but no skill guarantees are in place beyond 2025. KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson notes $7.6MM of Johnson’s 2026 base will shift to a full guarantee if the Pro Bowl cornerback is on the roster by that date. With no true guarantees on this deal post-2025, the Bears could get out with just $5MM in dead money (in the event of a post-June 1 cut) in 2026.
- The Vikings have been active in using void years under GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. This practice cost the team when Kirk Cousins and Dalvin Tomlinson departed, but it is turning to cap space-saving measure heavily this year as well. Minnesota included four void years in Sam Darnold, Aaron Jones and Andrew Van Ginkel‘s deals, with three void years used to spread out the three-year, $22.5MM Blake Cashman contract’s cap hits. While this will create some dead money if these players are not re-signed before their contracts officially expire, the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling observes it created some cap space in the event the Vikes need to carry a bigger 2024 cap number for Justin Jefferson, who has been on the extension radar for two years. That said, Jefferson’s 2024 cap figure is already at $19.7MM on the fifth-year option.
- Looking elsewhere on the Vikings’ payroll, their Jonathan Greenard deal (four years, $76MM) features $42MM in total guarantees. The contract includes $4MM guaranteed for 2026, per Goessling. Though, that money is classified as injury guarantees, providing the Vikes — like the Bears with Johnson — some flexibility down the road on a $19MM-AAV contract.
- Rounding up some Minnesota contract matters, Goessling adds Shaquill Griffin‘s one-year contract is worth $4.55MM and features $3.99MM fully guaranteed. The Vikings are giving Jonathan Bullard a one-year, $2.25MM deal to stay, per Goessling, who adds Dan Feeney‘s contract to come over from the Bears is worth $1.8MM. Jonah Williams, the defensive lineman, signed a one-year, $1.5MM deal that includes $350K guaranteed, Goessling offers. Jihad Ward‘s one-year accord is worth $1.8MM and includes $1MM guaranteed, The Athletic’s Dan Duggan tweets.
- Initially labeled as being worth up to $27.25MM, D.J. Reader‘s Lions pact contains $22MM in base value. The Lions are only guaranteeing the veteran nose tackle $7.4MM at signing, per OverTheCap. Coming off his second quad tear in four years, Reader would receive a $4MM roster bonus on Day 3 of the 2025 league year. That date will certainly be pivotal for his Detroit future.
- Arrested on a fourth-degree DWI charge in December, Vikings OC Wes Phillips pleaded guilty to a lesser charge recently. The third-year Minnesota OC pleaded guilty to a careless driving charge, Fox 9’s Jeff Wald notes. Phillips, 45, agreed to pay a $378 fine and will serve eight hours of community service.
Lions Made Effort To Retain G Jonah Jackson
The Lions have two upper-crust contracts allocated to offensive linemen, having extended Taylor Decker and Frank Ragnow. They also have Penei Sewell on track to eventually score a monster right tackle deal. Exiting the season, these contractual components — along with plans for Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown — had made it more likely than not Jonah Jackson would need to find his second contract elsewhere.
That ended up happening, with the four-year guard starter landing a three-year, $51MM deal from the Rams. Jackson’s Rams deal came on a day in which two teams — the Rams and Panthers — each finalized plans to add two high-priced guards. Jackson joins Kevin Dotson as well-paid Rams guards; the latter signed a three-year, $48MM contract. While the Rams’ guard plan also involved re-signing a starter to keep him out of free agency, the Lions crafted a similar approach.
Although not much came out about a Lions effort to re-sign Jackson, the Detroit News’ Justin Rogers notes the team had hopes of reaching a deal that would keep him off the market. A belief in the building existed that Jackson would be retained even in the days before free agency, but Rogers adds the Lions then learned Jackson’s price tag would come in higher than they anticipated.
Other teams undoubtedly encountered similar issues, with the salary cap rising by more than $30MM from its 2023 place. This year’s guard class featured a number of candidates to score big contracts, and the cap spike effectively ensured that group would fare well. Dotson re-signing with the Rams before the market opened also helped players like Jackson, who received the second-highest guard payment among this year’s UFAs — behind only the Panthers’ five-year, $100MM Robert Hunt deal.
Jackson, 27, had expressed a fondness for Detroit and hoped extension talks would lead to his second contract coming with the Lions. But little emerged indicating the sides were serious about an extension entering last season. By late February, the parties were not close on terms. Jackson’s eventual defection led the Lions to add Kevin Zeitler in free agency. The 12-year veteran will team with Graham Glasgow, who re-signed (on a three-year, $20MM deal that includes $8MM fully guaranteed) just before the legal tampering period began.
Zeitler joined the Lions on a one-year, $6MM accord. His play in a midseason Ravens rout of the Lions impressed the NFC North champions, and Rogers adds the team made contact with Zeitler early in free agency. A deal took nearly a week to finalize, but Zeitler — a former Bengals first-round pick who later started for the Browns, Giants and Ravens — is now tied to a fifth team.
“You never know when guys get to that age how long they’re going to last,” Holmes said, calling the Zeitler-Glasgow combination Plan A going into free agency. “So, when it got to the end of the season, and really started diving into those targets, and looked at him again, I was like, ‘Wow, no. He sustained that for the whole season.’ He’s a guy that, he just fits like a glove for what we’re about.”
It cost the Lions less per year to sign both Glasgow and Zeitler, who received a combined $13.5MM. The Rams gave Jackson $25.5MM fully guaranteed. Jackson’s age helped secure that deal, with Glasgow and Zeitler respectively set for their age-32 and age-34 seasons. Glasgow, who had re-signed with the Lions in 2023, may well have needed to leave Detroit once again had Jackson agreed to terms. The Ravens had started talks on a second Zeitler contract but will move on; Zeitler joins guard John Simpson and right tackle Morgan Moses as starting O-linemen lost this offseason.
The Lions are expected to trot out three 30-something O-line starters this coming season, but Zeitler has been one of the NFL’s steadiest guards over the past several seasons. Pro Football Focus rated the former first-round pick as a top-15 guard in each of his three Ravens seasons. The advanced metrics site did not place Jackson in the top 20 during his four-year Detroit stay.
49ers Sign Lions TE Brock Wright To RFA Offer Sheet
MARCH 30: The 49ers signed Wright to a three-year, $12MM offer sheet that features $6MM in guaranteed money, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area notes that the 49ers have no interest in negotiating “a contract for another team,” and they executed the offer sheet with the belief that the Lions won’t match.
The Lions now have until Wednesday to match. If they don’t, they’ll lose the tight end to the Niners for nothing in return.
MARCH 29: The Lions tendered Brock Wright as a restricted free agent earlier this month, keeping the young tight end around. The team did not use a second-round tender, opening the door to a potential offer sheet.
Although RFA offer sheets are fairly rare, the 49ers have submitted one to Wright, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. The Lions have five days to match. The 49ers are looking for a backup tight end to replace Charlie Woerner, per the San Jose Mercury News’ Cam Inman. The NFC champions have identified a target.
The Falcons gave Woerner a three-year, $12MM deal in free agency, adjusting the 49ers’ depth chart behind George Kittle. A former UDFA out of Notre Dame, Wright has spent the past three seasons with the Lions. The 25-year-old pass catcher worked as one of Sam LaPorta‘s backups last season, enjoying a bigger aerial role previously.
Wright, 25, played 44% of Detroit’s offensive snaps last season. In 2022, that number came in at 52%. The 6-foot-5 pass catcher totaled 18 receptions for 216 yards and four touchdowns in 2022. This included a 51-yard game-winner against the Jets. Pro Football Focus did not rate Wright well as a run blocker last season, grading him in the bottom quartile at the position. Still, 263 of Wright’s 423 offensive snaps came on run plays. Woerner ranked second in this department, which has long been critical in a run-focused and play-action-oriented 49ers offense.
The Lions tendering Wright at the original-round level cost $2.99MM; due to applying the low-end tender, Detroit would not receive any draft compensation if it failed to match San Francisco’s offer. The Lions used a fifth-round pick on James Mitchell in 2022, and veteran Shane Zylstra joins the third-year player on Detroit’s TE depth chart. Wright would represent a modest loss for the Lions while strengthening the roster of the team that narrowly beat them for the NFC title.
The terms of this offer sheet are not yet known, but Wright no longer appears on schedule for unrestricted free agency in 2025. If the Lions do not match, Wright would join a 49ers team rostering two 2023 draftees — Cameron Latu (Round 3) and Brayden Willis (Round 7) — behind Kittle. Latu did not play as a rookie, suffering a season-ending knee injury during the preseason.
While offer sheets are rare, a few notable players — a list including Bills guard Ryan Bates, Cardinals D-tackle Xavier Williams and Broncos running back C.J. Anderson — have received them over the past decade. Teams regularly construct offer sheets to make it difficult for the player’s current club to match, but it will likely not be too costly for the Lions to match this one.
Jags, LB Foye Oluokun Agree On Extension
One of the NFL’s top tacklers has a new deal in place. Foye Oluokun, a Jaguars free agency pickup in 2022, has agreed to terms on a new four-year extension, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports.
Oluokun’s second Jaguars contract will lock him down through the 2028 season; the deal is worth $45MM and includes $22.5MM fully guaranteed. The ex-Falcons linebacker has led the NFL in solo tackles in each of the past two seasons. The contract can max out at $48MM, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets. The team has since announced the extension.
AAV-wise, this agreement checks in a bit south of Oluokun’s first Jags contract. The Yale alum had signed a three-year, $45MM deal to join the Jags; that average salary ranked fourth at the position entering Friday. Oluokun received $28MM guaranteed at signing two years ago, but the contract did not feature any guarantees for the upcoming season. Oluokun now has additional security.
Oluokun, 28, has rewarded the Jags on their initial investment, starting 17 games in each of the past two seasons. He reached 128 solo stops in 2022 and 111 last season. The former sixth-round pick has made at least 173 tackles in each of the past three seasons, leading the league in total tackles twice in that span.
Oluokun’s 192 stops in his final Falcons slate are the most any NFLer has accumulated in the 21st century. That created a big market for him in 2022, and although the Jags have jettisoned multiple free agents they signed to help on defense that year (Foley Fatukasi, Darious Williams), they are doubling down on their prolific tackler.
This agreement will drop Oluokun’s cap number from its present $21.75MM place, providing cap relief for a Jags team that has made multiple big investments in free agency. The team signed Gabe Davis and Arik Armstead to eight-figure-per-year deals this month. The Jags have also begun negotiations with Trevor Lawrence. Although the team will have Lawrence locked up through 2025 due to the soon-to-be-exercised fifth-year option, many first-round quarterbacks since the 2011 CBA changed the rookie salary landscape have agreed to new deals before Year 4.
No one else this century has even eclipsed Oluokun’s second-best tackle season (184); Pro Football Focus has viewed the former Falcons De’Vondre Campbell successor as a top-30 linebacker in each of his two Jaguars seasons. After letting Campbell walk in 2020, the Falcons received tremendous production from Oluokun. The Jaguars have certainly benefited as well; the ex-Ivy Leaguer has tallied 20 tackles for loss over his two Jaguars slates.
With Deion Jones‘ extension still on the payroll in March 2022, Atlanta let Oluokun walk. But the team soon traded Jones, starting over at linebacker. Oluokun has topped both Jones and Campbell on his third contract, with his guarantees almost definitely set to run through at least the 2025 season.
AFC East Notes: Patriots, Bills, Fangio
Even though the Patriots re-signed Kendrick Bourne, their failed pursuit of Calvin Ridley leaves a void at receiver. Robert Kraft certainly believes the team made a viable offer but cited an interesting reason for the former first-round pick choosing the Titans.
“It was not because of finance. Clearly, his girlfriend wanted to be in the South,” Kraft said (via the Boston Herald’s Doug Kyed) of Ridley, referring to the wide receiver’s wife. “We had a situation where the taxes were, like, almost 10% higher. We offered — we were willing to keep going at that premium. But he didn’t want to be in the Northeast. And part of it might be the quarterback situation as well.”
The Pats and Jaguars were believed to be battling for Ridley, but the Titans came in with a monster offer. Tennessee gave Ridley a whopping $46.98MM guaranteed at signing — third among all wide receivers. That number will jump to $50MM if he is on Tennessee’s roster on Day 5 of the 2025 league year. The Patriots have faced criticism for their free agency route, after Jerod Mayo said the team was planning to be more aggressive. Much of the Pats’ moves have involved re-signings. The Pats have a big decision to make at No. 3 overall, and trade-down rumors are emerging. If they do draft a passer third, the WR need will be glaring — unless a rumored Pats trade effort produces a deal — on Day 2 of the draft.
Here is the latest from the AFC East:
- Michael Onwenu joined the host of guards who received big paydays this month, but the Patriots are not planning to return him to his primary rookie-contract position. New England is planning to station Onwenu where he played much of last season. After re-signing the former sixth-round pick on a three-year, $57MM deal, the Pats are keeping him at right tackle, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. Onwenu appears comfortable with this plan, per the Boston Sports Journal’s Mike Giardi. The Pats used Onwenu at guard during the 2021 and ’22 seasons, but after injury issues at right tackle last season, Bill Belichick moved him back to that position — where he spent time during his rookie campaign. While left tackle remains an issue post-Trent Brown, the Onwenu deal solidifies the team’s RT job.
- Bills GM Brandon Beane does not expect Micah Hyde to retire, and despite the team having re-signed Taylor Rapp and brought Mike Edwards over from the Chiefs, Hyde could remain in the picture. Beane is not ruling out a re-signing, ESPN.com’s Alaina Getzenberg notes. Hyde played out a third Bills contract and joins a few other accomplished safeties on the market — Justin Simmons, Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs among them. While GMs often indicate interest in re-signing a player at a lower rate exists, the Bills did follow through on this by bringing back Jordan Poyer at a lower cost (two years, $12.5MM) in 2023. Buffalo disbanded the Hyde-Poyer tandem by cutting the latter this month.
- Oregon wide receiver Troy Franklin has a workout scheduled with the Bills, per Sportskeeda.com’s Tony Pauline. The No. 43 overall prospect on Daniel Jeremiah’s NFL.com big board, Franklin has four “30” visits scheduled as well. Working with first-round QB prospect Bo Nix, Franklin posted 1,383 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns last season. Franklin was sick during Combine week, Pauline adds, noting he weighed in seven pounds heavier (183) at his pro day.
- Mike McDaniel confirmed the Dolphins did not have the intention of moving on from Vic Fangio after one season, but the third-year HC indicated (via ProFootballNetwork.com’s Adam Beasley) a few one-on-one conversations led to an understanding it would be best for the sides to part ways. Fangio quickly agreed to terms with the Eagles, which came after players heard rumblings the accomplished DC was eyeing a move back to Philadelphia during last season.
- Bourne’s three-year, $19.5MM Patriots contract includes $5.5MM guaranteed, and KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets the veteran wide receiver can guarantee $2.5MM of his $5.5MM 2025 base salary by eclipsing 800 receiving yards this season. Bourne, who is coming off a torn ACL, has one 800-yard season in six years; he posted exacted 800 in 2021.
Raiders’ Josh Jacobs Offer Did Not Approach Packers’ Proposal
Perhaps the busiest day in terms of RB1 movement in NFL history sent Josh Jacobs to Green Bay. This came after multiple reports indicated Raiders interest in keeping their 2023 franchise player.
The Raiders did make Jacobs an offer, and The Athletic’s Vic Tafur indicates it was the second-best proposal the former rushing champion received this month (subscription required). But the Packers’ proposal, per Tafur, came in well north of where the Raiders were willing to go for their five-year starter. Jacobs is now set to replace Aaron Jones as Green Bay’s top back.
Las Vegas’ offer not being especially close to Green Bay’s is rather interesting given the structure of Jacobs’ Packers contract. Although the Pack gave Jacobs a four-year, $48MM deal — numbers that match where they went for Jones in 2021 — only $12.5MM of that is fully guaranteed. Jacobs is due a $5.93MM roster bonus on Day 5 of the 2025 league year, making that a pivotal date for his prospects of playing a second Packers season. With the team moving on from a seven-year performer in Jones, it would stand to reason it wants Jacobs for at least two seasons.
Jacobs’ Packers defection brought an end to two years of negotiations. The team was reported to have made Jacobs a better offer than the Giants submitted to Saquon Barkley before last summer’s deadline for tagged players to sign extensions. Though, another report indicated the previous Raider regime did not make an aggressive pursuit to extend Jacobs.
The Giants were believed to have offered Barkley a deal in the neighborhood of $22MM guaranteed. While Barkley’s bet on himself paid off — in the form of an Eagles deal including $26MM guaranteed at signing — no other RB this offseason topped $14MM guaranteed at signing. D’Andre Swift‘s Bears deal included the $14MM number. After his 2022 rushing championship, Jacobs finished with just 805 rushing yards and produced the fifth-worst rushing yards over expected number (per Next Gen Stats). The 2019 first-round pick also missed the Raiders’ final four games due to multiple contusions.
The Raiders expressed interest in keeping Jacobs, who was among those who stumped for Antonio Pierce to land the full-time HC job. But they hired a new GM (Tom Telesco) who came to Las Vegas after refusing to extend Austin Ekeler‘s contract with the Chargers last year. Telesco showed interest in adding Ekeler to the Raiders’ backfield, but with it only taking a two-year, $8.43MM deal to send the dual-threat back to Washington, it is safe to assume Vegas’ Jacobs proposal came in higher.
The running back carousel did not send one of the recent starters to Nevada, potentially pointing to the Raiders addressing the position in the draft. For now, Jacobs fill-in Zamir White — a 2022 fourth-round pick — sits atop the depth chart.
Cardinals, Bears, Jets To Host Rome Odunze
Last year’s wide receiver class did not produce prospects on the level of the drafts from 2020-22, but this year’s crop is poised to supply a few teams with cornerstone talent.
Marvin Harrison Jr. and Malik Nabers lead the way, but Rome Odunze also qualifies as a wideout with a clear path to becoming a top-10 pick. Odunze has already visited the Giants; the Washington product has more meetings lined up. This includes a return to the Big Apple for a Jets summit, with ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson adding the Cardinals and Bears are also set to host Odunze.
[RELATED: Jets, Cardinals Meet With Malik Nabers]
Mel Kiper Jr.’s ESPN.com big board places Harrison, Nabers and Odunze at Nos. 3-5, illustrating the talent available for WR-needy clubs. Evaluators are high on this year’s WR class, per ESPN’s Jordan Reid, who floats the possibility of a seven-wideout first round. That would eclipse the 2020 class’ six first-round receivers. Quarterback value has long been expected to prevent any of these players from becoming a top-three selection, barring something unexpected, which would leave the door open for some teams that have the QB box checked to exit Round 1 with some pass-catching value.
The Cardinals and Jets qualify, with the Bears on the doorstep of doing so due to their imminent Caleb Williams partnership. Arizona had negotiated an extension with Marquise Brown, but months after cutting DeAndre Hopkins, the Cardinals lost Brown in free agency. They did not make a major addition, setting the stage for a receiver investment likely early in this draft. The Bears and Jets did make veteran moves, courtesy of the Chargers, with Chicago adding Keenan Allen and the Jets signing Mike Williams. Drafting a first-round wide receiver would create formidable depth charts for either team.
Arizona holds the No. 4 overall pick (though, the team has been connected to moving down once again), while Chicago’s own selection sits at No. 9 (eight spots after the Panthers-obtained pick set to go to Williams). The Jets are stationed at No. 10. New York chose a wideout 10th overall two years ago, taking Garrett Wilson. The Cardinals have 2023 third-rounder Michael Wilson, but of these teams, their depth chart is weakest at the position.
Kiper viewed Odunze’s final season as the difference between him being a Day 2 pick and having the chance to go in this year’s top 10. After an 1,145-yard 2022 slate, the 6-foot-3, 212-pound pass catcher broke through for a 1,640-yard, 13-touchdown showing to help Washington to the national championship game. Odunze produced 10 100-yard games last season, including five straight to lift the Huskies into the national title game.
Bringing size and plus run-after-catch ability to the equation, Odunze has not been mentioned as a player capable of leapfrogging Harrison — as Nabers has — but the recent Michael Penix Jr. target should be expected to be chosen early.
Latest On Giants, QB J.J. McCarthy
A fast-rising prospect — or so it would seem during this year’s pre-draft process — J.J. McCarthy may not be available by the time the Giants go on the clock at No. 6. The team has explored a trade-up, which may be necessary if it is serious about acquiring a Daniel Jones replacement this year.
The Giants will head into the draft with a pivotal decision. Jones is under contract through 2026, but his guarantees wrap after the 2024 campaign. With this New York regime not having drafted Jones, an opportunity could be in place to grab its own passer and begin building around him. Many around the NFL believe the Giants’ QB target would be McCarthy, ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano notes.
Giants-McCarthy connections emerged in early March, and in the weeks since, the Michigan prospect has become a likely top-10 pick. The Vikings have since obtained a second first-round pick, and the team is almost definitely looking to package its two first-rounders (Nos. 11 and 27) to climb up for a passer. That package could put Minnesota in position to leapfrog the Giants, with both the Cardinals and Chargers — who already employ Pro Bowl quarterbacks — being linked to moving down. As a result of the Vikings’ move, the Giants may need to be prepared to trade up as well.
The Giants have already hosted McCarthy on a “30” visit; they are set to observe a private workout Sunday. New York is also doing extensive homework on Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels. The latter will visit the Big Apple soon. Maye has already visited the Giants, and the ex-North Carolina passer is also set to work out for the team soon. While Maye has been a fixture near the top of draft boards, he has also been docked a bit during the pre-draft process. Maye’s second season as the Tar Heels’ starter did not measure up to his first, and ESPN.com’s Matt Miller adds multiple teams view McCarthy as a better prospect. Mel Kiper Jr.’s latest ESPN.com big board ranks Maye seventh and McCarthy 14th.
This is, of course, smokescreen season. Recent Giants drafts can reveal misdirection as well; in 2022, strong Giants connections to Charles Cross came about, but the team chose Evan Neal. But the Giants will not have their pick of the top QBs in this draft. The Commanders continue to be connected to Daniels at No. 2, but a recent report also tied them to McCarthy. Considering McCarthy’s profile and less prolific college career, it would be surprising if he went in front of Daniels or Maye. But he impressed at the Wolverines’ pro day; buzz about this draft now including four high-end QB prospects has since began to circulate.
John Mara has endorsed Jones consistently, and the current New York starter is on track to be back from his ACL tear by training camp. But the Giants can escape the widely criticized four-year, $160MM contract by taking on modest dead money in 2025. Mara also OK’d a Giants first-round QB, and the Joe Schoen-led front office informed the owner this draft features the best QB crop in “a long time,” ESPN’s Jordan Raanan adds. That would raise the stakes for the Giants, who will need to weigh this year’s QB class against the 2025 group and against a future with one of this year’s impact wide receivers.
The Giants could leave this draft with a new WR1 in place around Jones — who has not exactly been given good wideout situations during his career — without trading up, but QB connections persist. With teams like the Broncos and Raiders also tied to potential trade-ups for passers, the Giants are a key team to monitor ahead of the draft.
Panthers Sign OLB Jadeveon Clowney
After five seasons on one-year agreements, Jadeveon Clowney will land a deal that covers more than one season. The Panthers will provide it, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports.
Carolina is giving Clowney a two-year deal worth $20MM, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. The contract can max out at $24MM. The Panthers have announced the signing, one that will send Clowney back to the region where he grew up. The Rock Hill, South Carolina, native — who became a No. 1 overall pick after a standout career with the Gamecocks — will be tasked with helping a Panthers team that is starting over at edge rusher.
The Jets and Ravens were in on Clowney as well, but the Panthers may well have edged the AFC squads out with a better offer. Clowney will collect a far better deal compared to his 2023 Ravens pact — a one-year, $2.5MM agreement that came to pass during training camp — and has scored his first multiyear agreement since his Texans rookie contract back in 2014.
Panthers GM Dan Morgan said this week the Panthers had not given up on Clowney, despite a report of aggressive Jets interest. The 31-year-old edge defender will join D.J. Wonnum and K’Lavon Chaisson as Carolina free agency pickups in the wake of the Brian Burns trade. While none of these players is a Burns-level pass rusher, Clowney is coming off a 9.5-sack season — more than Burns totaled in 2023 — and has been productive for multiple teams.
Although Clowney is not a lock to play for the Panthers beyond 2024, this agreement will end his string of one-year accords that stretches back to his 2019 franchise tag season. The Texans tagged Clowney but traded him to the Seahawks, with the trade terms preventing Seattle from tagging the former South Carolina phenom a second time. That did not turn out to be an issue, as Clowney has never checked in as a high-level pass rusher. He then signed a one-year deal with the Titans, two one-year pacts with the Browns and landed with the Ravens on a low-cost accord just before last season.
Not exactly a consistent pass rusher, Clowney has offered plus run defense at points and has been a player capable of providing pressure inside. In addition to coming off a career-high sack total, Clowney posted 19 QB hits and forced two fumbles to help the Ravens lead the NFL in scoring defense. The Ravens were interested in keeping the 6-foot-5 defender, with Clowney’s wife (via CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson) confirming he had spoken with the AFC North team about another deal. Baltimore was probably not as interested at that price. Baltimore is still interested in re-signing Kyle Van Noy, who nearly matched Clowney by reaching nine sacks despite joining the team in late September.
Clowney has battled injuries, with knee trouble a particular issue in Houston. He missed eight games for the Titans, completing a sackless season, and clashed with Browns coaches during his second Cleveland season — a two-sack campaign. Opposite Myles Garrett in 2021, however, Clowney reached nine sacks. Despite Clowney’s low sack total in 2022, Pro Football Focus graded him 27th among edge rushers — ahead of an 18th-place assessment last season. PFF ranked Clowney as a top-20 run defender in 2023 as well. While Clowney’s three Pro Bowl nods all came during his Texans tenure, he has remained a productive performer into his early 30s.
Two of the three edges that trekked to Charlotte on a visit early in free agency have signed. Chase Young did not, opting for a Saints deal amid neck concerns, but Clowney and Wonnum will be key parts of Ejiro Evero‘s defense in 2024. Burns anchored Carolina’s edge rush for five seasons, with Yetur Gross-Matos — who landed a 49ers deal early in free agency — providing inconsistent supplemental work. Hybrid pass rusher Frankie Luvu also left, joining the Commanders.
The Panthers probably are not done staffing their edge positions, with a draft choice seemingly prudent considering the free agency-heavy makeup at the position. But Clowney gives the team a versatile piece to deploy as it attempts to recover from last season’s 2-15 debacle.