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Colts Contacted Derek Carr During Quarterback Search

December 9th, 2025 at 11:04pm CST by Connor Byrne

In the wake of Daniel Jones‘ season-ending Achilles injury in Week 14, the Colts stunningly lured 44-year-old quarterback Philip Rivers out of retirement on Tuesday. The Pro Football Hall of Fame semifinalist wasn’t the only retired signal-caller the Colts showed interest in signing. The team also contacted Derek Carr, Armando Salguero of OutKick reports.

At 34, Carr would have given the Colts a much younger option than Rivers. Carr also isn’t nearly as far removed from playing in the NFL as Rivers, who hung it up after the 2020 season. Carr, a four-time Pro Bowler, started in all 10 of his appearances with the Saints last year.

While battling a debilitating shoulder injury, Carr decided to call it a career in May. The Saints announced then that Carr had “significant degenerative changes to his rotator cuff.”

Seven months later, it’s unclear if Carr is even healthy enough to resume his career. However, as of September, Carr hadn’t closed the door on a potential NFL return. At least two teams have mulled adding him this year. Before acquiring Joe Flacco from the Browns in early October, the Bengals considered Carr as a potential substitute for the then-injured Joe Burrow.

With the Nov. 4 trade deadline still weeks away at the time, the Bengals could have swung a deal with New Orleans for Carr. The fact that the deadline has passed and the Saints still own Carr’s rights complicates matters. Even if Carr is motivated to play, he can’t sign with the Colts or anyone else unless the Saints release him from the reserve/retired list. Cutting Carr at this stage of the season would subject him to waivers. The Colts wouldn’t have first dibs on Carr in that scenario.

Carr to the Colts will go down as an interesting what-if. Should the Colts elevate Rivers from their practice squad, it would make them one of the league’s most fascinating teams to watch down the stretch. Having fallen to 8-5 since a 7-1 start, the Colts are now sitting outside of the AFC playoff picture after a brief run as the top seed in the conference.

With Jones and backups Anthony Richardson and Riley Leonard all injured, Rivers may step in for part or all of an intimidating four-game stretch. The Colts’ remaining foes – the Seahawks, 49ers, Jaguars, and Texans – have gone a combined 36-16 this season. All hold playoff spots at the moment, and the Colts are looking up at the Jaguars (9-4) and Texans (8-5) in the AFC South.

Updated 2026 NFL Draft Order

December 9th, 2025 at 11:02pm CST by Adam La Rose

Week 14’s action brought about a few notable updates to the standings at both ends of the NFL’s conferences. Another four teams are officially out of playoff contention, while wins by Tennessee and New Orleans could prove to be rather important once the campaign has ended.

The Jets, Browns, Falcons and Commanders were eliminated from the postseason through the results of recent days. Of course, each of those teams have been out of the running for a playoff push for some time now. Still, that group will be worth watching closely over the closing four weeks of the season as the top-10 order for Day 1 of the draft gradually comes into focus.

Uncertainty regarding the quarterback class of 2026 will no doubt remain a talking point over the coming months. Fernando Mendoza strengthened his case to be QB1 in April’s draft, although it remains to be seen if other top signal-callers like Dante Moore and Ty Simpson will turn pro or elect to remain in school for one more season. Decisions on those fronts will be central storylines carrying significant implications for the teams near the top of the order which find themselves in need of a quarterback investment.

For non-playoff teams, the draft order is determined by the inverted 2025 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. Playoff squads are slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular season record.

Here is an updated look at the first-round order:

  1. New York Giants (2-11)
  2. Las Vegas Raiders (2-11)
  3. Tennessee Titans (2-11)
  4. Cleveland Browns (3-10)
  5. New Orleans Saints (3-10)
  6. Washington Commanders (3-10)
  7. New York Jets (3-10)
  8. Arizona Cardinals (3-10)
  9. Los Angeles Rams (via Falcons)
  10. Cincinnati Bengals (4-9)
  11. Minnesota Vikings (5-8)
  12. Miami Dolphins (6-7)
  13. Baltimore Ravens (6-7)
  14. Kansas City Chiefs (6-7)
  15. Dallas Cowboys (6-6-1)
  16. Carolina Panthers (7-6)
  17. Detroit Lions (8-5)
  18. New York Jets (via Colts)
  19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-6)
  20. Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6)
  21. Philadelphia Eagles (8-5)
  22. Houston Texans (8-5)
  23. Chicago Bears (9-4)
  24. Buffalo Bills (9-4)
  25. Los Angeles Chargers (9-4)
  26. San Francisco 49ers (9-4)
  27. Cleveland Browns (via Jaguars)
  28. Dallas Cowboys (via Packers)
  29. Seattle Seahawks (10-3)
  30. New England Patriots (11-2)
  31. Los Angeles Rams (10-3)
  32. Denver Broncos (11-2)

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/6/25

December 6th, 2025 at 7:01pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are the minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations for the Week 14 Sunday slate:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Dort becomes Arizona’s 26th placement on injures reserve this year. The Cardinals’ receiving corps has been stretched thin with Marvin Harrison Jr. out with a heel injury and Zay Jones on injured reserve with an injured Achilles tendon.

Earning more and more responsibility over the course of his sophomore campaign, former undrafted free agent Roland-Wallace will unfortunately head to IR after starting in the Chiefs’ two most recent contests. As a roaming safety, he’s been functioning lately as a nickelback alongside the versatile pair of starting safeties behind him.

With Bosa set to miss this weekend’s game with a hamstring injury, Fox has been called up from the practice squad in Buffalo to help bolster a thin group of defensive ends.

Smyth gets the call again this week as the primary placekicker in New Orleans. He’ll be kicking in his second straight game following the team’s dismissal of Blake Grupe.

For Spector in Buffalo, this will be his third elevation this season, meaning the Bills will need to sign him to the active roster in order for him to appear in another game in 2025. The same is true of Turner in Denver, Hanson in Kansas City, and Banks in Tampa Bay. On the other side of that, Tindall in Arizona, Lewis in Jacksonville, and Cook in New York were all signed to 53-man rosters today after they used up their three allotted practice squad elevations.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/4/25

December 4th, 2025 at 6:15pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s practice squad moves:

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

Dolphins practice squad receiver A.J. Henning was hit with a suspension today for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing substances, per ESPN’s Marcel Louis-Jacques. It’s uncertain how long the ban will last. The UDFA out of Northwestern hasn’t gotten into a game this season. He joined the Dolphins back in May and hauled in three catches during the preseason.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/3/25

December 3rd, 2025 at 6:42pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s midweek minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Cincinnati Bengals

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

  • Designated for return from IR: LB Cam Jones

Pittsburgh Steelers

Collier signed with Arizona after injuries and a failure to live up to his first-round draft stock led to his departure from Seattle. He earned a starting role with his new team, but after his first game for the Cardinals, he was placed on season-ending injured reserve with a bicep injury. He worked his way back to health and started 15 of 17 game appearances last year, but his struggles on the line led to a team reunion with Calais Campbell and the drafting of Walter Nolen in the first round. Collier was working as a depth piece before getting placed on IR back in September, and if he can get back to the active roster, he’ll add to the line’s depth, once again.

As a rookie, Verdon was placed on the reserve/non-football injury list to start the season. The undrafted linebacker had been designated to return from the reserve/NFI list, but now that his 21-day practice window has come and gone without an activation, he moves to IR.

Pharaoh in Arizona, Dickerson in Duval, and Pettis in New Orleans all had used up their three standard gameday practice squad elevations. If their respective teams wanted to see them play in any more games this season, a move to the 53-man roster was necessary.

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/2/25

December 2nd, 2025 at 10:07pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Twenty-one different teams made practice squad transactions on Tuesday. Here are the latest updates:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

  • Signed: CB Jalen Kimber 

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

  • Released: WR Kyrese Rowan

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

  • Released: OL Wyatt Bowles

Miami Dolphins

  • Signed: OL Kion Smith
  • Released: OL Braeden Daniels

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Signed: DB Daequan Hardy

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

With J.J. McCarthy close to a return from his concussion, the Vikings parted ways with Ridder. He was signed last week after McCarthy entered concussion protocol, but was not elevated to back up Max Brosmer in Week 13. That responsibility instead went to John Wolford, who remains in Minnesota.

Bishop was released by the Steelers at the beginning of November. After appearing all 17 games last year with a 50% snap share, he did not make the 53-man roster this season and remained on the practice squad. He will now join the Saints in the hopes of making his 2025 debut in New Orleans.

Updated 2026 NFL Draft Order

December 1st, 2025 at 10:56pm CST by Adam La Rose

Week 12 saw the Giants become the first team in the NFL to be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Based on Sunday’s results, another two teams from each conference saw their postseason chances officially come to an end.

The Titans, Saints, Raiders and Cardinals have now been eliminated as well. Attention in the case of those teams will increasingly turn toward the offseason. For some, questions about changes at the quarterback spot will be ongoing through the spring. Free agency is not expected to include many notable options, so the draft will be sought out in several instances as a means of finding a 2026 starter.

Of course, the incoming class of passers has largely underwhelmed this season. That has led to uncertainty regarding the ceiling for many of the top prospects at the quarterback position. Nevertheless, supply often outweighs demand at the top of the Day 1 order in the NFL draft. How things shake out over the closing weeks of the season will be key in determining which QB-needy teams find themselves in the best position to select a new QB1.

For non-playoff teams, the draft order is determined by the inverted 2025 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. Playoff squads are slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular season record.

Here is an early look at the first-round order:

  1. Tennessee Titans (1-11)
  2. New York Giants (2-11)
  3. New Orleans Saints (2-10)
  4. Las Vegas Raiders (2-10)
  5. Cleveland Browns (3-9)
  6. Washington Commanders (3-9)
  7. New York Jets (3-9)
  8. Arizona Cardinals (3-9)
  9. Los Angeles Rams (via Falcons)
  10. Cincinnati Bengals (4-8)
  11. Minnesota Vikings (4-8)
  12. Miami Dolphins (5-7)
  13. Kansas City Chiefs (6-6)
  14. Pittsburgh Steelers (6-6)
  15. Carolina Panthers (7-6)
  16. Dallas Cowboys (6-5-1)
  17. Detroit Lions (7-5)
  18. Houston Texans (7-5)
  19. Baltimore Ravens (6-6)
  20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-5)
  21. Buffalo Bills (8-4)
  22. Philadelphia Eagles (8-4)
  23. New York Jets (via Colts)
  24. San Francisco 49ers (9-4)
  25. Los Angeles Chargers (8-4)
  26. Cleveland Browns (via Jaguars)
  27. Dallas Cowboys (via Packers)
  28. Seattle Seahawks (9-3)
  29. Los Angeles Rams (9-3)
  30. Denver Broncos (10-2)
  31. Chicago Bears (9-3)
  32. New England Patriots (11-2)

Saints To Use K Charlie Smyth In Week 13

November 29th, 2025 at 7:43pm CST by Adam La Rose

Sunday will mark the Saints’ first game since their decision to move on from kicker Blake Grupe. His immediate replacement will not be the veteran signed earlier this week, though.

The Saints have made Charlie Smyth one of their practice squad gameday elevations for Week 13. The Northern Irishman is thus in line to make his first ever regular season appearance tomorrow. He will look to provide New Orleans with an improved performance compared to Grupe’s inconsistent 2025 season.

Grupe’s third year as the Saints’ kicker did not go nearly as well as the first two. His field goal accuracy rate for 2025 sits at 69.2%, and the team moved on shortly after auditioning free agent options to replace him. One of them – Cade York – was signed on Tuesday. Instead of York (who has made 23 appearances across spells with three different teams), it will be Smyth getting the first opportunity to handle kicking duties.

The 27-year-old entered the NFL when he signed with the Saints in 2024 by way of the International Player Pathway Program. Smyth has been in the organization ever since, but given his background as a Gaelic football player prior to joining New Orleans he has been seen to date more as a developmental project than a reliable backup kicking option. It will be interesting to see how his debut goes as the 2-9 Saints look to identify players worth retaining for next season.

New Orleans has also elevated receiver Dante Pettis for tomorrow’s game against the Dolphins. This is the veteran’s third elevation, so for the Saints to continue using him down the stretch he will need to be signed to the active roster in the near future.

Saints RB Alvin Kamara Has MCL Sprain, Out For Week 13

November 29th, 2025 at 12:46pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Saints running back Alvin Kamara suffered a sprained MCL in Week 12 and will miss at least one game.

Kamara went down early in last week’s loss to the Falcons. An MRI revealed he avoided a serious injury, per Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football, but he was still ruled out for the Saints’ Week 13 matchup with the Dolphins. The nine-year veteran should still have a chance to return this season.

2025 has been a down year for Kamara. The five-time Pro Bowler is putting up career-lows across the board with 3.6 yards per carry, 5.6 yards per reception, and 59.7 scrimmage yards per game.

Kendre Miller‘s season-ending injury in October will put rookie Devin Neal atop the Saints’ depth chart in Kamara’s absence. The sixth-round pick has only appeared in seven games this season with 29 total touches for 125 yards. In his last three years at Kansas, Neal averaged 6.0 yards per carry and scored 44 total touchdowns.

Kamara’s injury will also get Audric Estime invovled after just one appearance and three offensive snaps this year. The 2024 fifth-rounder recorded 310 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 76 carries as a rookie in Denver.

The Saints’ only other running back is Ian Wheeler, a 2023 UDFA who has yet to appear in an NFL game. He will be elevated from the practice squad for Sunday’s game and could have a game day role until Kamara’s return. New Orleans may also add a veteran to their inexperience, unproven backfield.

NFL Minor Transactions: 11/25/25

November 25th, 2025 at 6:35pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Detroit Lions

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

  • Activated from IR: OT Barry Wesley
  • Signed to active roster: RB Evan Hull

Seattle Seahawks

In addition to waiving cornerback Arthur Maulet, the Lions also moved on from defensive lineman Quinton Jefferson and cornerback Nick Whiteside. According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, these moves were likely made in anticipation of upcoming activations from IR and PUP.

The Patriots started preparing for Will Campbell and Jared Wilson‘s absences by adding some experienced offensive line depth, as the team snagged Thayer Munford off the Browns practice squad today. The former seventh-round pick was mostly a part-time starter during his three seasons with the Raiders, although he did start a career-high 10 games for the organization in 2023.

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