Cowboys, S P.J. Locke Agree To Deal
For the second day in a row, the Cowboys have lined up a safety deal. P.J. Locke is heading to Dallas, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
This will be a one-year deal, Rapoport adds. Locke will earn up to $5MM with his new team. He and Jalen Thompson are positioned to handle key roles on Dallas’ defense next season.
Locke came up as a Cowboys target just before free agency, as he has played for new Dallas DC Christian Parker previously. Parker’s time as the Broncos’ DBs coach (2021-23) overlapped with Locke’s stay as a backup and then starter. Year 3 of Parker’s work with Locke involved a promotion into a starting role — as Kareem Jackson was suspended twice for illegal hits and then released — alongside Justin Simmons, and the Broncos re-signed Locke in 2024.
A former UDFA out of Texas, Locke will return to his home state after playing out a two-year, $7MM Denver deal. The Broncos signed Brandon Jones (three years, $20MM) in 2024 but brought back Locke to start alongside the ex-Dolphin. Locke’s performance, however, prompted the AFC West team to give Talanoa Hufanga a three-year, $39MM deal in 2025. Locke worked primarily as a third safety in Denver last season.
After 23 starts from 2023-24, Locke only made three during the ’25 regular season. This came after he underwent offseason spine surgery. But the Broncos needed the sub late in the season, as Jones suffered a season-ending pectoral injury. Locke started alongside Hufanga in both Denver’s playoff games, making a crucial divisional-round interception as the Broncos staved off the Bills. The six-year veteran also forced a fumble in Denver’s overtime win, making nine tackles in the game.
With Jones and Hufanga due back in Denver, Locke is leaving for a potential starting role. Though, his contract could lead to a competition or another reserve opportunity. Thompson agreed to a three-year, $33MM accord, and the Cowboys have Malik Hooker on a reworked deal. Hooker is now tied to a one-year, $5MM contract. That could pit him against Locke in a competition. Locke’s past with Parker should help ahead of an age-29 season.
Adam La Rose contributed to this post.
Jets To Sign CB Nahshon Wright
Nahshon Wright came through with a big contract year, doing so after being previously discarded. Wright’s market did not heat up to the point teams are completely sold, but the veteran cornerback will see a 2026 raise.
The Jets are adding Wright on a one-year deal worth up to $5.5MM, NFL insider Jordan Schultz tweets. It certainly seems teams expressed considerable skepticism at Wright’s five-interception Bears season, as this amounts to a “prove it” contract.
A former Cowboys third-round pick, Wright played a key role for a division-winning Bears team. The 6-foot-4 corner benefited from Jaylon Johnson’s early-season injury, starting 16 games. Once Johnson returned from injury, the Bears continued to deploy Wright as a starter by reducing former second-round pick Tyrique Stevenson‘s role. But Wright’s past looks to have made a big investment a tough sell for some teams. Wright was interested in re-signing with the Bears, but it does not appear the interest was mutual.
The Cowboys gave up on Wright during their 2024 training camp, trading him straight up for Vikings second-round corner Andrew Booth. The latter is now in the UFL. Minnesota also released Wright in April 2025, leading to his Chicago stop. The would-be Bears depth piece impressed with his coverage instincts, compensating for suboptimal speed. The Bears used the reclamation project on 97% of their snaps, far outpacing Stevenson’s workload.
This represents a raise for Wright, who played for just $1.1MM in 2025, but it also may be costly. Wright is heading into his age-28 season; the Oregon State will need to submit a quality Jets campaign to drive a market in 2027 — or through an extension — and he is running out of time on that front.
New York has disbanded its strong CB trio from the Robert Saleh years, trading both Sauce Gardner and Michael Carter II and letting D.J. Reed walk (to the Lions) last year in free agency. Aaron Glenn‘s team acquired Jarvis Brownlee from the Titans early last season, doing so after signing ex-Ravens CB2 Brandon Stephens to a $12MM-per-year deal. The team used a third-round pick on Azareye’h Thomas last year as well. This setup did not deliver much in Year 1, as the Jets’ defense cratered, but Wright should bring some upside — especially at this low price.
Jags Not Open To Brian Thomas Jr. Trade?
MARCH 10: It appears the Jaguars have not actually changed their stance from the fall. The team is not believed to be interested in moving the third-year wide receiver, ESPN’s Adam Schefter notes. With Hunter moving to more of a cornerback role, the Jags appear set to see if Thomas can bounce back alongside Meyers and Washington.
MARCH 9: Arriving during Trent Baalke‘s final draft as Jaguars GM, Brian Thomas Jr. enjoyed a promising rookie season before submitting to a sophomore slump. With a new regime running the show now, Thomas’ standing in Duval County may be a bit shaky.
The Jaguars are believed to be listening to offers on Thomas, SNY’s Connor Hughes reports. Teams called the Jags about Thomas at last year’s deadline — the Giants, Jets and Steelers among them — but the team was not open to dealing the 2024 first-rounder. It appears the AFC South club is now more willing to hear what Thomas can bring in a trade.
The Steelers called the Jags on Thomas last year, but they agreed to trade for Michael Pittman Jr. earlier today. The Jets added Adonai Mitchell in their Sauce Gardner trade. The Giants lost Wan’Dale Robinson to the Titans in free agency, though they still roster Malik Nabers and Darius Slayton. Thomas played with Nabers at LSU, and Slayton’s contract can be shed fairly easily in 2027.
Although the Jags are prepared to shift Travis Hunter to more of a cornerback-first role, they saw Thomas fail to make a big impact in Liam Coen‘s debut. The big-bodied target slumped to a 48-catch, 707-yard season. That would not exactly qualify as a woeful campaign, but Thomas posted 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns as a rookie. He caught just two TDs last season, and trade pickup Jakobi Meyers checked in as a more reliable option in Coen’s offense. The Jags have since given Meyers a three-year, $60MM extension.
It would seemingly take at least a Day 2 pick — possibly with another choice sprinkled in — to convince the Jags to move off a player with a 1,200-yard rookie season in his recent past. Two years remain on Thomas’ rookie contract, increasing his value. No extension talks can commence until 2027. As it stands, the Jags do not look likely to ever initiate those.
Coen and GM James Gladstone gutted Baalke’s pass catcher setup last year, trading Christian Kirk and cutting Evan Engram, Gabe Davis and Devin Duvernay. Dyami Brown also played out his 2025 contract. If the Jags are to seriously entertain trading Thomas, they would need at least one more option. That said, Parker Washington took a step forward last year and led the division-winning team with 847 receiving yards. Though, he is now in a contract year. Thomas’ status will be a storyline to monitor as teams fill their receiver rooms in free agency.
Colts, Daniel Jones Making Progress
The first quarterback to be transition-tagged since the Falcons cuffed ex-Colt Jeff George in 1996, Daniel Jones and Indianapolis began this process with considerable ground to cover. The Colts’ initial offer did not come close to Jones’ asking price.
Indianapolis made an offer in the Sam Darnold ballpark, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, who confirms the team proposed an extension around the three-year, $100.5MM the Seahawks gave Darnold last year. Jones’ camp balked, citing the leverage a franchise tag would have provided and countered with an offer in another salary bracket.
A rather tough negotiator in 2023 with the Giants, Jones viewed his price closer to $50MM per year, Breer adds. This reminds of when the quarterback sought a deal north of $45MM per year back in 2023, when the $50MM-AAV club was not yet in place. The Giants settled on a four-year, $160MM pact that backfired quickly. Somehow, after an ACL tear, more neck trouble, a fibula fracture and an Achilles tear, Jones has moved into strong leverage position again. That led to the Colts transition-tagging their 2025 starter at last week’s deadline.
Given a one-year, $14MM deal in 2025, Jones is now tied to a $37.83MM tag. That number does give the veteran quarterback some leverage, as does the Colts having traded their 2026 and ’27 first-rounders for Sauce Gardner. It appears Jones, who was prioritized over Saquon Barkley three years ago, is not intent on a team-friendly deal here.
That said, veteran insider Jordan Schultz notes progress has been made since team and player were far apart. No extension has been reached, but it would certainly help the Colts — by reducing Jones’ cap figure — to complete one. Indy was able to retain Alec Pierce on a four-year, $116MM deal. But the team essentially gave away longtime No. 1 wideout Michael Pittman Jr. — whom Pierce arguably usurped atop the Colts’ pass-game hierarchy last season — in a pick-swap trade with the Steelers to create necessary cap space. Were Jones not on the transition tag, Indianapolis would be less restricted.
The Colts have not exactly kept their cards close to the vest; they are fairly committed to retaining Jones for a second season. Despite the 28-year-old passer going through another offseason of rehab, he is expected to be Indy’s 2026 starter. The Vikings, Jones’ brief employer late in the 2024 season, were believed to be monitoring this situation. But the prospect of Kyler Murray on a vet-minimum deal has emerged. That would be far less costly for Minnesota, though the Vikes out-offered the Colts for Jones in 2025. Jones chose Indy because he deemed Anthony Richardson as a less imposing hurdle to a starting job than J.J. McCarthy.
Indianapolis still holds more than $23MM in cap space as of Tuesday afternoon, but the team could make more roster improvements if Jones’ transition tag turns into a lower cap number on an extension during free agency. The clock is ticking there, and Jones’ camp may continue to exert leverage. It worked pretty well, contract-wise, when he proceeded that way with the Giants.
Dolphins To Sign QB Malik Willis
11:13pm: Willis will see both his 2026 and 2027 base salaries fully guaranteed, SI.com’s Albert Breer reports. A $2MM roster bonus is due in March 2028. Year 3 will have a nonguaranteed salary. Still, the Dolphins will be paying the Tagovailoa dead money and Willis’ fully guaranteed compensation over the next two years.
11:51am: Despite taking on a record-setting dead money sum from the impending Tua Tagovailoa release, the Dolphins will be the team that signs off on Malik Willis‘ second contract.
Willis is reuniting with Jon-Eric Sullivan and Jeff Hafley in Miami, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, who reports the sides agreed on a three-year deal worth $67.5MM. Willis will receive $45MM guaranteed at signing.
While not a $30MM-per-year contract like recent rumors indicated, Willis will still cash in via that nice guarantee number. This figures to provide at least a two-year runway for Willis in Miami, which will spread the Tagovailoa dead cap hit through 2027. Still, a $99.2MM dead cap hit over that span and a $20MM-plus QB salary will be an interesting route to take. A bit of a smokescreen effort may have taken place on the Dolphins’ part, as Sullivan pointed to the team’s cap situation making it difficult to win the Willis sweepstakes.
In terms of AAV, Willis is set to hover in unoccupied territory. This number comes in south of the Baker Mayfield–Sam Darnold tier but well north of backup money. The full guarantee likely became a strong sweetener for the Jordan Love backup, who drew interest from a few teams — the Browns, Cardinals and Steelers among them. Presenting a strange free agency profile with six career starts, Willis ranked seventh on PFR’s top 50 free agents list. He will do much better than Justin Fields in terms of fully guaranteed money; the Jets gave their 2025 starter at $30MM guarantee.
Fields’ $20MM-per-year deal is the only QB contract in this neighborhood, but the Jets are about to terminate that deal. Soon, Willis’ $22.5MM AAV number will be the only QB pact in between Cam Ward‘s rookie salary ($12.21MM) and Mayfield’s current $33.3MM AAV.
Mike Vrabel deemed Willis unplayable late in the 2022 season, after the third-round rookie looked erratic in his short time at the helm. The Titans drafted Will Levis in 2023 and parked Willis behind he and Ryan Tannehill. A new Titans coaching staff signed off on trading the Jon Robinson-era draftee to the Packers for a low-end return in summer 2024. Willis became needed immediately, with Love going down with an injury in Week 1 of that season.
Matt LaFleur customized the offense to suit Willis’ skillset, and the effort created a market. Willis ran his start count from three to six in Green Bay, putting up eye-popping (and unsustainable) numbers. He compiled a 6:0 TD-INT ratio in Green Bay, having completed 70 of 89 attempts at a college-y 12.1 yards per pass. Willis also averaged 6.2 yards per rush (29/261/3). Willis will now work under Bobby Slowik, who will run a LaFleur-type scheme. Both are Kyle Shanahan disciples.
With Willis committing to Miami within an hour of the legal tampering period’s outset, other QB-needy teams will not need to authorize higher-end guarantees — most likely, at least. But some of those teams will be left scrambling, as a host of needs exist on this year’s market. That helped inflate Willis’ value despite the six career starts.
The Dolphins gave Tagovailoa six years but erred by giving him a $53.1MM-per-year extension in 2024. The Mike McDaniel passer showed tremendous promise as an accurate thrower, but concussions gave way to inconsistency for the left-hander. Miami benched Tagovailoa late in McDaniel’s tenure and was never seriously linked to retaining him — despite what would have been a easier route contractually — this offseason. Sullivan will take a risk with Willis due to his limited sample size, but he and Hafley certainly have plenty of information on him from the sides’ two-year overlap in Wisconsin.
Raiders, Tyler Linderbaum Reach Record-Setting C Contract
11:12pm: As expected, it is a player-friendly deal. Linderbaum will receive a $20MM signing bonus to go with fully guaranteed salaries in 2026 and ’27, according to ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano. This could become a fully guaranteed deal by March 2027. Linderbaum’s $21MM 2028 base salary shifts from an injury guarantee to a full guarantee on Day 3 of the 2027 league year. Barring a Christian Wilkins-like exit ramp forming before that point, this is a fully guaranteed $81MM contract.
12:49pm: The top center sweepstakes in free agency history is over. Linked to several teams, Tyler Linderbaum is choosing Las Vegas. The Raiders are adding the Pro Bowl blocker, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.
It will take a three-year, $81MM deal to bring Linderbaum to the desert. The Commanders, Titans and Giants joined the Ravens in being in on PFR’s No. 1-ranked free agent. Rather than a four-year commitment, Linderbaum agreed to a shorter-term deal that includes $60MM guaranteed.
In terms of market obliteration, this is among the greatest achievements in NFL history. Linderbaum hitting free agency allowed him to land a deal $9MM north (AAV-wise) of any center pact before him. This contract also checks in clear of every guard salary, with Linderbaum’s $27MM-per-year number topping Tyler Smith‘s $24MM AAV. This is a staggering commitment, but the Raiders led the NFL in cap space. After sending Maxx Crosby to Baltimore, Las Vegas will pilfer the Ravens’ O-line centerpiece.
Patrick Mahomes held the quarterback AAV record for less than two years, but it is safe to expect Linderbaum’s grip on the center market to last longer. It took Mahomes giving the Chiefs 10 years of control for them to hike the QB market by $10MM per year in 2020. Linderbaum managed to smash Creed Humphrey‘s center-record number ($18MM) without any such concessions. The power of the open market persists, as the salary cap has now climbed to $301.2MM.
Coming into today, the NFL only had two center pacts — after Drew Dalman‘s retirement — north of $13MM per year. Those went to Humphrey and the Eagles’ Cam Jurgens ($17MM). Linderbaum has signed an outlier accord and will join a Raiders O-line that is otherwise light on expenses beyond Kolton Miller‘s 2025 extension. Miller and Linderbaum will lead the way in protecting expected No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, whose rookie contract will align with Linderbaum’s three-year deal.
ESPN’s pass block win rate metric ranked Linderbaum fourth among all interior O-lineman last season; he ranked 13th in 2024. Pro Football Focus, conversely, has graded Linderbaum as a far superior run blocker. The agile lineman has certainly made a considerable difference for a run-reliant offense, and the Raiders are certainly paying him to help unleash Ashton Jeanty, who spent much of his rookie season bottled up behind an O-line PFF ranked 32nd.
The Raiders used a combination of Alex Cappa and Jordan Meredith at center last season. It should be expected Las Vegas, which entered today needing to spend to reach the three-year salary-floor mandate, will be in the guard market as well. Right tackle also served as a need for the struggling franchise, but this market’s biggest O-line fish — one of the biggest O-line prizes in free agency’s 34 years — will be teaming with (almost certainly) last year’s Heisman winner.
As for the Ravens, they will need a fallback option. The 2022 first-round pick had helped an O-line that lost guard starters in free agency along with RT Morgan Moses. While Baltimore has Ronnie Stanley and Roger Rosengarten in place at tackle, the team has needs at guard (where Daniel Faalele is unsigned) and now a massive void at center. The Ravens had aimed to pay Linderbaum, but they did not pick up his fifth-year option in 2025. The CBA groups all O-linemen together, making centers difficult to tag; no center has been tagged since Ryan Kalil (Panthers) 15 years ago.
Those factors helped lead Linderbaum out of Maryland, completing one of the more memorable chapters in O-line free agency history.
49ers To Sign WR Mike Evans
11:10pm: The Evans contract is worth $42.4MM in base value, according to The33rdTeam’s Ari Meirov. The incentive-laden deal includes $16.3MM guaranteed. This would stand to give the 49ers flexibility beyond 2026, though it is not yet known how the contract is structured.
1:35pm: Mike Evans will not agree to a fourth Buccaneers contract. Instead, the greatest offensive player in franchise history is leaving Tampa after 12 seasons. The 49ers are adding Evans, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo reports.
San Francisco is bringing in the future Hall of Famer on a three-year deal, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport. The Buccaneers have been among the best at retaining their own players under Jason Licht, and Evans’ agent confirms Tampa Bay made a “very strong offer.” But Evans will play for a second NFL team soon.
It is a three-year deal worth up to $60.4MM, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Evans was linked to a $20MM-per-year price recently, and while he may have fallen just short, this still represents a quality free agency conclusion for a soon-to-be 33-year-old receiver. An offer as high as $27MM per year may have emerged, Fox Sports’ Greg Auman offers. Evans could conceivably be more interested in fit at this stage of his career, having already played out two lucrative deals following his 2014 first-round accord.
Only Jerry Rice has more 1,000-yard seasons than Evans’ 11. While the 49ers wide receiver legend is in his own league for All-Pro honors (11), Evans is a two-time All-Pro whose most recent such honor came in 2023. A broken collarbone sidelined Evans for much of 2025, but prior to that, the 6-foot-5 wideout began with an NFL-record-smashing 11 straight seasons of 1,000 receiving yards to start a career.
The Bucs had kept Evans off the 2024 free agent market by giving him a two-year, $41MM deal; this time around, the team viewed its all-time leading receiver as having the right to hear other teams’ offers. The Bucs drafted Emeka Egbuka in Round 1 last year, doing so a month after re-signing Chris Godwin for a second time. They also have Jalen McMillan signed through 2027. But Evans’ departure will sting Tampa Bay’s offense, as he has more than a 5,000-yard lead on the second-leading receiver (Godwin) in franchise history.
The 49ers are soon to release Brandon Aiyuk — barring an unlikely 11th-hour trade agreement — after a strange 2025. San Francisco took the rare step of voiding Aiyuk’s guarantees, as his injury rehab veered off course from the team’s wishes, and the 2024 extension recipient became distant during a lost season. The 49ers then lost 2024 first-round pick Ricky Pearsall to multiple injuries, finishing the year with George Kittle suffering an Achilles tear. Jauan Jennings helped save this battered receiving corps, and while the 49ers want to retain the former seventh-round find, he is now a free agent.
Beginning his Bucs career before Jameis Winston‘s arrival, Evans worked with the erratic No. 1 overall pick for five seasons and became a key part of the team’s sales pitch to Tom Brady in 2020. Evans and Godwin helped convince Brady to join the Bucs, and the duo were pivotal during the franchise’s run to a Super Bowl LV win. After Antonio Brown‘s infamous walk-off, Evans continued to anchor the Bucs’ receiving corps and became a central reason for Baker Mayfield‘s rebound. It will be interesting to see if the Bucs go after a starter-level replacement or roll with Godwin, Egbuka and McMillan while allocating resources elsewhere.
Evans was connected to numerous teams in free agency. The Bills, Chargers, Commanders, Giants and Browns were among the suitors. The 49ers were on that list, however, with our Adam La Rose pegging this as a strong fit in his most recent mailbag. They will see if Evans can lift an offense that might be Kittle-less to open the 2026 season.
Chiefs To Sign RB Kenneth Walker
The Chiefs are changing course at running back. After many years with low-cost solutions, Kansas City will bring in this year’s top free agent prize at the position.
Kenneth Walker and the Chiefs are in agreement on a deal, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero reports. Rumored as potentially not being ready to pay up for Walker, Kansas City is doing just that after its recent run games have underwhelmed. It is a three-year, $43.05MM deal, insider Jordan Schultz tweets. The Chiefs are authorizing $28.7MM guaranteed, per Schultz, who adds the contract can max out at $45MM.
This guarantee trails only Saquon Barkley‘s $36MM number among running backs, even if it represents the total guarantee figure rather than what is guaranteed at signing. This is a massive number for Walker, who split time with Zach Charbonnet last season as the Seahawks did not view their starter as a plus in the passing game. Pass pro is certainly not Walker’s strength, but he is coming off a Super Bowl where he finished with 161 scrimmage yards and became the first running back Super Bowl MVP since Terrell Davis 28 years ago.
Kansas City was believed to be set to come away with a running back during this year’s free agency, according to ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler, who also linked the team to Travis Etienne. Ranked higher on PFR’s free agent top 50, Walker represents the bigger prize due to being two years younger (25). He does bring some injury risk, having missed two games apiece in 2022 and ’23 before being sidelined for six games in 2024. But the Chiefs will pay up after Walker’s strong playoff performance punctuated a 17-game 2025.
The Seahawks were in touch with Walker leading up to the legal tampering period, per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero, but recent rumors had pointed to the defending champs standing down if this market escalated beyond their comfort zone. Pelissero mentioned the Chiefs as a suitor today, and the team will deviate from its low-cost RB plans — which have been in place since Jamaal Charles‘ release nearly 10 years ago.
Following the Charles era, the Chiefs identified Kareem Hunt as a starter and saw him with the rushing title as a rookie. Hunt’s ugly assault on a woman at a Cleveland hotel being captured on video led the Chiefs to cut him during the 2018 season. After the team used Damien Williams as its RB1 in the wake of that separation, the team missed on a first-round pick (Clyde Edwards-Helaire). Isiah Pacheco bailed the Chiefs out on that whiff, but a 2024 leg fracture slowed the seventh-round pick. Both Pacheco and Hunt, who returned to Missouri in 2024, are unsigned.
Walker’s Seahawks tenure included two 1,000-yard rushing seasons. While Charbonnet outscored Walker 12-5 last season, the latter will become Kansas City’s unquestioned lead back in 2026. He figures to be the top running back Patrick Mahomes has played with since at least Hunt 1.0. Walker is also more elusive than even that version of Hunt, with Pro Football Focus ranking him first among RBs in 2025. Though, it will be interesting to see how the Chiefs get around Walker’s pass-pro limitations — which led the Seahawks to use Charbonnet in a near-equal timeshare.
The Chiefs do not have a big-ticket contract at wide receiver, though they are close to re-signing Travis Kelce on a one-year deal. Mahomes’ 10-year contract is continually restructured, moving cap hits down the road. That has helped the Chiefs, who just offloaded Trent McDuffie‘s fifth-year option salary to the Rams. In also letting Jaylen Watson sign with the Rams in free agency, the Chiefs are starting over at corner. But they will have a dynamic RB set to roll come September.
Packers To Trade Rashan Gary To Cowboys
Until today, it remained unclear if the Packers would be moving on from Rashan Gary. The former first-rounder will in fact be playing elsewhere next season, though.
Gary is being traded to the Cowboys, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports. A Day 3 pick in the 2027 draft will be heading the other way; NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport clarifies it will be a fourth-round selection. Dallas was a runner-up in the Maxx Crosby sweepstakes, leaving the team to explore other edge rush options. Instead of waiting for free agency to commence, the Cowboys have already swung a deal in that regard.
This agreement will allow for a reunion between Gary and new Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker. Parker was a defensive quality control coach with Green Bay during Gary’s rookie campaign. A prominent role should await Gary, whose contract runs through 2027. This trade will create just under $11MM in cap savings for the Packers while generating a dead money charge of $17MM.
Gary said his Instagram account was hacked when a goodbye message emerged from it Friday, but rather than being released, the seven-year Packer generated (minimal) trade value. Gary comes over after a season as Micah Parsons‘ edge rush tandem partner but will now rejoin Kenny Clark — the player sent to the Cowboys in the blockbuster Parsons swap — in Dallas.
Two years remain on Gary’s four-year, $96MM contract, and this trade comes after the Cowboys were mentioned as interested in free agents Trey Hendrickson, Jaelan Phillips, Odafe Oweh and Boye Mafe. The Cowboys fielded an abysmal defense and could conceivably add one of those options, but Gary is 28 and fills a need — even if he has not lived up to this $24MM-AAV extension. This marks the second time since August the Cowboys have taken on a Packers deal worth at least $22MM per year. Clark has since come up as an extension candidate, as the Cowboys will look to bring down his 2026 cap number.
After trading Parsons, the Cowboys have 2025 edge rushers Jadeveon Clowney, Sam Williams and Dante Fowler unsigned. The team used a second-round pick on Donovan Ezeiruaku last year and then tragically saw 2024 second-rounder Marshawn Kneeland pass away during the season. More work will need to be done at OLB for the Cowboys, and they will have a player who — despite playing as a 4-3 DE over the past two years — did his best work in a 3-4 scheme.
Gary registered 9.5 sacks in 2021 and nine in 2023, garnering a Green Bay payday. He still combined for 15 sacks over the past two seasons but came up as a name to monitor with regards to a release or trade. The Packers used a 2023 first-round pick on Lukas Van Ness but have not seen that move pay off yet. While Van Ness could see more playing time as a result of Gary’s exit, ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky notes the Packers should be expected to target defensive linemen soon after making two trades — the other sending Colby Wooden to the Colts — that cut into the unit’s depth.
Adam La Rose contributed to this post.
Patriots To Add G Alijah Vera-Tucker
Alijah Vera-Tucker has seen three seasons heavily impacted by injuries, but he found a taker on Day 1 of free agency. The former Jets first-round pick is heading to the Patriots, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets.
The Giants were negotiating with the ex-Jet guard’s camp, per SNY’s Connor Hughes, but the NFC East club could not close the deal. Vera-Tucker instead will join the defending AFC champions. The Giants may have balked at the price, per Hughes, and it appears a few teams were willing to bet on upside here.
The Pats are giving Vera-Tucker a three-year, $42MM deal that could climb to $48MM, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Guarantees are not yet known, but it looks like the injury-plagued blocker has done well for himself.
Vera-Tucker has moved between guard and right tackle as a pro, though the USC alum has shown his best stuff inside. Pro Football Focus ranked the 2021 first-rounder ninth overall among guards in 2024. Unfortunately, he could not build on that momentum. A third season-ending injury transpired in 2025, hurting Vera-Tucker’s extension case — a cause also affected by the Jets’ organizational turnover.
Encountering triceps tears in both arms, Vera-Tucker also sustained an Achilles tear during his rookie contract. He missed 41 games as a Jet. The team viewed the former No. 14 overall pick as a Pro Bowl-caliber guard, but injuries impeded him. Still, Vera-Tucker is heading into an age-27 season. The Patriots will bet on upside, though it is worth wondering how much they’re betting.
PFR’s No. 44-ranked free agent, Vera-Tucker probably would have been the top guard this year had he endured one or two season-ending maladies. But the second triceps tear wiping out all of his 2025 season made this an unpredictable market. New England has probably secured one of the highest-upside plays this year, though it comes with obvious risk.
As Ben Levine’s Patriots Offseason Outlook noted, 2025 left guard starter Jared Wilson was a college center. With the Pats trading Garrett Bradbury to the Bears, it is possible Wilson slides there and Vera-Tucker camps at LG. Vera-Tucker was primarily a right guard as a Jet; Michael Onwenu plays there for the Pats, though he has proven malleable as well. As for the Jets, they are down to one player from their five-first-rounder contingent from 2021-22. Garrett Wilson remains, while Zach Wilson, Vera-Tucker, Sauce Gardner and Jermaine Johnson are gone.
The Giants have been connected to a few guards. Two of those rumored options — Wyatt Teller, Daniel Faalele — remain unsigned as we wind down an explosive first day of the legal tampering period.