HEADLINES

CB Paulson Adebo To Join Giants

March 10th, 2025 at 12:04pm CST by Sam Robinson

This year’s free agency market features a host of cornerbacks seeking a second free agency payday, but the Giants are adding a first-time UFA. Paulson Adebo is joining the Giants, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo reported during a TV appearance. It is a three-year deal. Adebo will collect $18MM per year with $36MM guaranteed, per a Garafolo update.

Joining Asante Samuel Jr. as a CB regular taking his first shot at free agency, Adebo also joins the four-year Charger in coming off an injury-marred season. Adebo sustained a broken femur last October, halting a strong run for a player who had seen extensive time as New Orleans’ No. 1 corner due to Marshon Lattimore‘s injury trouble.

Adebo’s last healthy season (2023) produced notable improvements in coverage. While we still do not have tremendously reliable metrics to measure coverage, Adebo was charged with yielding only 6.7 yards per target and allowing a 55% completion rate as the closest defender in 2023. He allowed one touchdown pass that year and yielded merely a 62.7 passer rating. In 2024, Adebo allowed a 60% completion rate and only a 71.9 passer rating as the closest defender.

Traditional metrics back Adebo’s case more, as he has been a consistent turnover-forcing presence. Adebo combined for seven interceptions over the past two seasons, breaking up 28 passes in that span. The Saints relied on the 6-foot-1 defender for extended stretches in that span, as the organization grew frustrated with Lattimore’s injury recovery paces. After trading Lattimore, the Saints had shown interest in retaining Adebo. But New Orleans’ annual cap issues may have impacted that effort.

The Giants have not seen their recent first-round pick, Deonte Banks, grow into a consistent option. They have questioned Banks’ work ethic, going so far as to bench him briefly last season. As Banks has struggled, the Giants now have a better option in Adebo to play alongside the 2023 draftee and slot Dru Phillips. With the team still housing a formidable pass-rushing trio in Dexter Lawrence, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux, it will hope a better cover man can round out a pass defense that ranked 24th last season.

That said, the Giants were eighth in passing yards allowed. While teams did not run into many shootouts in Giants matchups during a dreadful Big Blue season, Shane Bowen’s defense was not the lead area to fix. That domino will fall later for the Giants, whose current regime’s futures likely depend on how the quarterback situation is addressed. For now, though, an early defensive addition could move the needle, as Adebo is not expected to be a candidate to end up on the reserve/PUP list following his broken leg.

Patriots To Sign LB Robert Spillane

March 10th, 2025 at 11:59am CST by Sam Robinson

Robert Spillane established himself as a starter during his Raiders tenure, and Pete Carroll expressed interest in retaining the veteran linebacker. But free agency will lure him out of Las Vegas.

The Patriots will use their league-leading cap-space figure to bring in Spillane, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reported (via NFL Network). It is a three-year, $37.5MM deal, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler reports. Spillane will see $20.6MM guaranteed, The Athletic’s Vic Tafur tweets.

After Spillane’s two-year, $7MM deal came following a 59% usage-rate Steelers season, the Raiders were correct in buying low. He started all 34 games he played over the past two years, posting 97 and 98% snap rates in those seasons. The Patriots will pay up for his age-29 and age-30 seasons. Spillane made 158 tackles last season and 148 in 2023, stuffing box scores despite the Raiders failing to improve in this span.

While still better as a thumper type, Spillane showed coverage skills with five INTs and 11 passes defensed in that span. The former UDFA also registered 5.5 sacks in his two Las Vegas years, delivering in just about every facet for struggling teams. Pro Football Focus did observe a disparity between Spillane’s run- and pass-defending skills, ranking him sixth among ILBs in run stoppage and in the bottom third against the pass.

Although Spillane will not be working under Josh McDaniels, this does bring a reunion between a productive Raider and the coach who was in charge when Las Vegas brought him in during the 2023 offseason. Spillane joins a few defenders to stop through New England early in free agency, accompanying Harold Landry, Milton Williams and Carlton Davis. Not landing contracts on the level those higher-end free agents did, Spillane still secured a significant raise from his Raiders pact and will be asked to play a starting role alongside them in Foxborough next season.

Rams To Re-Sign Jimmy Garoppolo

March 10th, 2025 at 11:50am CST by Sam Robinson

Sean McVay said recently he wanted the Rams to re-sign Jimmy Garoppolo. After the team took care of its higher-profile quarterback matter, QB2 continuity is on tap.

The latest veteran to stop through and back up Matthew Stafford, Garoppolo has a one-year deal in place to stay with the Rams, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo reported on NFL Network. Garoppolo secured a similar base value ($4.51MM) compared to his 2024 contract, but NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero adds $9MM in incentives are also included. This would seemingly pertain to potential Garoppolo starts, should Stafford go down.

Garoppolo followed Baker Mayfield and Carson Wentz into town as the Rams’ backup QB. Unlike Mayfield, Garoppolo did not need to play any games of consequence. Although the Rams could have moved up in the NFC playoff seeding hierarchy, they sat a host of starters in Week 18. Garoppolo received the start and played well, throwing for 334 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to the Seahawks.

The Rams had given Garoppolo a landing spot after a rough Raiders season. The Raiders had benched Garoppolo, after Davante Adams had made calls for it during a season in which the team fired Josh McDaniels, and made him a post-June 1 cut. In a rather interesting turn, Garoppolo and Adams are back together. The Rams acquired the All-Pro receiver Sunday night. If Stafford’s injury trouble produces an absence, Netflix’s Receiver project will be worth circling back to as a reminder of how poorly that QB-WR fit was in Las Vegas.

Garoppolo, 33, had been the 49ers’ primary starter for five seasons. He guided the team to Super Bowl LIV and then helped San Francisco out of a jam the Trey Lance miss caused, coming off the trade block to sign a reworked deal to stay in 2022. While the 49ers advanced to the NFC title game once again, it was Brock Purdy at the controls that year.

Making 64 career starts, Garoppolo has seen a litany of injuries keep that number fairly low. He suffered an ACL tear in September 2018 and played only six games in 2020, as ankle trouble surfaced. After playing through multiple injuries in 2021, Garoppolo suffered a Jones fracture to introduce Purdy to the NFL world in 2022. He missed two games with the Raiders in 2023 and ended up on the backup tier soon after the team’s McDaniels firing.

The Rams want to develop a young QB behind Stafford, via The Athletic’s Jourdan Rodrigue, but Stetson Bennett has not proven to be that option. For now, Garoppolo will remain the team’s Stafford insurance policy.

Chiefs, RB Elijah Mitchell Agree To Deal

March 10th, 2025 at 11:42am CST by Sam Robinson

Known to be interested in making a free agent running back addition, the Chiefs have moved quickly in doing so. Elijah Mitchell has a one-year deal in place worth up to $3.5MM, as first reported by Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz.

Kansas City is taking a flier on an injury-prone back, one who missed all of last season after San Francisco played the Christian McCaffrey backup on IR before setting its 53-man roster. Mitchell had previously sustained setbacks as a rookie and in 2022, when the 49ers used two IR activations on the sixth-round pick.

Mitchell memorably usurped Trey Sermon, a third-round pick presumed to be the 49ers’ lead back going into the 2021 season, ahead of his first game and led the ’21 49ers in rushing (963 yards). The mid-major product missed six games that season and 12 in 2022, going down with two MCL injuries in the latter season. When Mitchell returned from the first of those, the 49ers had traded for McCaffrey. As McCaffrey zoomed to the 2023 rushing title, Mitchell totaled 75 carries for 281 yards and two scores in 2023.

The Chiefs won a bet on a previous injury-prone 49ers castoff, seeing Jerick McKinnon shake off two full-season absences and play three years as a passing-down back alongside the likes of Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Isiah Pacheco. Edwards-Helaire is now with the Saints, and Pacheco is coming off a season in which a broken leg slowed his momentum. Kareem Hunt, added in the wake of Pacheco’s leg break, is again a free agent.

Losing Samaje Perine to the Bengals on Monday, the Chiefs have only Pacheco and 2024 UDFA Carson Steele on the roster as RB holdovers. Mitchell, 27, will vie for a backup job, but the Chiefs should be expected to make another addition — perhaps in the draft — to round out their group.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

Commanders To Sign DT Javon Kinlaw

March 10th, 2025 at 11:38am CST by Adam La Rose

The Commanders have quickly found a new starter along the defensive line. Javon Kinlaw is headed to the nation’s capital.

Kinlaw has a three-year, $45MM deal in place with the Commanders, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. The pact includes $30MM in guarantees, a major raise compared to his one-year Jets tenure. This agreement will allow for Kinlaw to reunite with general manager Adam Peters, who was in the 49ers front office which drafted him.

Washington already had an expensive DT tandem in the form of Daron Payne and Jonathan Allen, but after granting the latter permission to seek a trade, the team released him. That move seemed to open up a starting spot for 2024 second-rounder Johnny Newton, but Peters has instead made another lucrative investment at the position.

Kinlaw faced high expectations as the 14th overall pick in 2020, but his San Francisco tenure did not go according to plan. Injuries were a problem in his second and third seasons, a span in which he played only 10 total games. The South Carolina product logged a full campaign during his walk year, but even that only landed him a one-year Jets deal.

The Jets represented a quick stopover for Kinlaw, who used a “prove it” deal to his advantage despite Gang Green finishing 5-12 and regressing on defense. The former first-rounder’s knee trouble did not limit him, as the five-year vet started all 17 Jets games and tallied a career-high 4.5 sacks and five tackles for loss. Going from a one-year, $7.25MM contract to $30MM guaranteed represents one of the 2024 seasons bigger wins, even though it largely came off the radar.

Payne’s new sidekick will be expected to build on this, and while his injury past provides some concerns, Peters is plenty familiar with the risks Kinlaw once brought. Ahead of an age-28 season, Kinlaw will be taking over for Allen on a deal not too far south of where the Pro Bowler stood.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post.

Bengals To Re-Sign DT B.J. Hill

March 10th, 2025 at 11:38am CST by Sam Robinson

The Bengals unraveled defensively last season, squandering an All-Pro-caliber Joe Burrow season and an actual All-Pro campaign from Ja’Marr Chase. The team overhauled its defensive staff as a result, but at least one free agency piece from Lou Anarumo’s unit is staying.

Former trade acquisition B.J. Hill is rejoining the Bengals on a three-year, $33MM deal, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Hill will earn $16MM guaranteed as part of this agreement.

Monday’s agreement marks Hill’s second with the Bengals, who had benefited from their 2021 trade with the Giants in obtaining the former New York regular. Hill has started 50 games with the Bengals during his four-year Cincinnati stay. He previously secured a three-year, $30MM deal, having played a key role during the Bengals’ Super Bowl LVI season.

Hill fared better in 2023, having smashed his previous career high by posting 21 QB hits. The former Giants draftee has no other seasons with more than 12; he tallied nine in 2024. While Hill only added three sacks to his career total (23.5) last season, he also finished with a career-best seven tackles for loss. While little went right for the Bengals defensively in 2024, Hill showed enough to convince a new defensive staff he was worth bringing back at an eight-figure-per-year rate.

Cincinnati saw its Sheldon Rankins investment bust, amplifying Hill’s value. The team has also since agreed to terms with nose tackle TJ Slaton, who is on track to operate as a D.J. Reader nose tackle successor. The onus will be on Hill, then, to provide interior pressure, as Slaton is primarily a run defender. It remains to be seen — though it seems unlikely — if these two will play alongside Trey Hendrickson in 2025.

Bears To Sign C Drew Dalman

March 10th, 2025 at 11:22am CST by Adam La Rose

Drew Dalman is on the move, and his destination comes as no surprise. A deal is in place between the top center on the market and the Bears.

Chicago is set to add Dalman on a three-year, $42MM deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. The pact includes $28MM in guarantees. Once the contract is signed, the Bears will have completed their renovation along the interior of the offensive line.

Dalman expressed a desire to remain with the Falcons after playing out his rookie contract, with team and player meeting at the Combine. In the wake of those talks, though, it seemed the 26-year-old would at least explore outside options. The Bears were named as a suitor to watch as it became clear Dalman would have a strong market. Now, a lucrative pact has been worked out.

After barely seeing any playing time as a rookie, Dalman served as the Falcons’ starting center for each of the past three years. His consistent performances in that role helped outweigh the fact he was limited to only nine games in 2024. Expectations will be high upon arrival in the Windy City as the Bears look to find a permanent solution at center after cycling though several options in recent years.

Chicago entered the 2025 offseason with questions everywhere along the O-line aside from right tackle Darnell Wright. Both guard spots have already been addressed, though, with trade agreements being worked out with the Rams for Jonah Jackson and with the Chiefs for Joe Thuney. Those two, along with Dalman, should represent a notable upgrade compared to where things stood last year.

Ryan Neuzil is in place as a potential Dalman successor in Atlanta. Today’s news likely means he will step into a starting role on a full-time basis as part of a Falcons unit which already includes big-money deals for guard Chris Lindstrom, right tackle Kaleb McGary and – most recently – left tackle Jake Matthews. Left guard Matthew Bergeron is also in place for next year, but the center spot will look different in 2025.

Chiefs To Sign T Jaylon Moore

March 10th, 2025 at 11:20am CST by Sam Robinson

After a host of left tackle plans eventually ended with a Super Bowl loss that magnified that issue, the Chiefs are spending to add a potential upgrade.

Jaylon Moore is relocating from San Francisco to Kansas City, with FOX Sports’ Jordan Schultz reporting the Chiefs are adding the former 49ers swing tackle. Moore will sign a two-year, $30MM deal the Chiefs.

This still represents a bit of a gamble on the Chiefs’ part. Moore does have 12 career starts on his resume, but he has never operated as a preferred starter. The 49ers had stationed him as their swingman behind Trent Williams and Colton McKivitz over the past two seasons, as McKivitz was the swing player behind Williams and Mike McGlinchey previously. Moore, however, was rumored to be drawing extensive interest on the market.

Williams’ late-season ankle injury opened the door, however, for Moore’s first extended audition. Pro Football Focus graded Moore just outside the top 25 among tackles last season, though the four-year veteran did not have enough snaps (271) to qualify as a regular. That is the central part of the Chiefs’ gamble, and their recent efforts to staff this position should induce some pause before declaring this signing a win.

Kansas City let Orlando Brown Jr. walk in 2023, after failing to extend him at the 2022 franchise tag deadline, and used Donovan Smith as a stopgap in 2023. That was a more effective plan than the team’s 2024 route, which featured second-round rookie Kingsley Suamataia benched in Week 2 and then 2023 third-rounder Wanya Morris parked later in the season. The Chiefs’ in-season D.J. Humphries addition preceded another injury for the ex-Cardinal, who went down in his first game with his new team. Joe Thuney then relocated to LT and fared reasonably well — until a poor Super Bowl showing reminded of the Chiefs’ blowout loss to the Buccaneers.

The Chiefs have traded Thuney to the Bears, making Trey Smith their high-priced guard. Suamataia has been rumored to be the team’s initial choice to replace Thuney at LG. Kansas City also has embattled RT Jawaan Taylor locked into his $19.5MM 2025 salary, thanks to his guarantee vesting a year ago. As the team will build around Smith and Creed Humphrey, it will hope Moore (27) will provide some elusive blindside stability for Patrick Mahomes.

Buccaneers, Haason Reddick Agree To Deal

March 10th, 2025 at 11:16am CST by Adam La Rose

Haason Reddick has not waited long to find a new home. Minutes after the start of the negotiating window, an agreement has been reached which will send him to Tampa Bay.

This will be a one-year deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. He adds that the pact has a value of $14MM and includes $12MM in guarantees. After the way in which 2024 played out for Reddick, that represents quite the financial commitment. It wasn’t long ago that Reddick was one of the top pass rushing commodities on the open market. Just three years ago, Reddick signed a three-year, $45MM deal to join the Eagles after totaling 23.5 combined sacks over his final year in Arizona and his only season with the Panthers.

He earned every penny in his first two years in Philadelphia while also earning his first two Pro Bowl selections. That first season with the Eagles saw him finish fourth in Defensive Player of the Year voting as he finished with career highs in sacks (16.0), quarterback hits (26), and fumble recoveries (3) while logging 11 tackles for loss and leading the league with five forced fumbles. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded him as the 11th-best edge defender that season out of 119 graded players at the position. While his second year in Philadelphia wasn’t as impressive, it was still Pro Bowl-worthy, seeing him rack up 11.0 sacks, 13 tackles for loss, and 23 quarterback hits.

Drama quickly came to surround Reddick’s situation following that season, though, as the Eagles granted him permission to seek a trade, despite his lack of a request for one. In fact, Reddick claimed to want an extension with the team, but they ultimately traded him to the Jets. The trade didn’t quench Reddick’s thirst for an extension, though, resulting in a holdout from training camp as the Jets intended to let him play out his contract. As the holdout continued, Reddick even requested a trade from the team that had just traded for him.

His holdout continued into the season as he was dropped by his agency and had to sign new representation. It took until Week 8 of the season for Reddick and New York to come to terms on an agreement that would get him onto the field, at which point he faced heavy fines for his absences in the offseason. The lack of offseason prep time with the team seemed to affect the Pro Bowler. Only starting two games in 10 appearances, Reddick only logged one sack (really two half-sacks), two tackles for loss, and three quarterback hits. Out of 119 players at the position, PFF graded Reddick at 102nd.

The Buccaneers didn’t really want for pass rushing in 2025. The team’s sack-total of 46 was tied for sixth in the league. Tampa Bay does see a number of outside linebackers hitting free agency this week, though, as the contracts of Shaquil Barrett, Joe Tryon, and Anthony Nelson are all set to expire. While those three players only combined for six sacks in 2024, the depleted depth is a concern. Signing Reddick will address that concern, and if he can rebound to anywhere near the success he had found in Philadelphia, the $14MM, single-year price tag won’t feel quite as heavy.

Ely Allen contributed to this post.

Buccaneers To Re-Sign Chris Godwin

March 10th, 2025 at 11:15am CST by Sam Robinson

The Buccaneers keep investing at receiver. A year after agreeing to terms with Mike Evans on a third contract, Tampa Bay will bring back Chris Godwin.

They have agreed to a three-year, $66MM deal to retain Godwin, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reported during an NFL Network appearance. Godwin will see $44MM guaranteed on this accord.

Godwin is believed to have left some money on the table to stay in Tampa, and the Bucs will keep Baker Mayfield‘s receiving corps intact. The cap-rich Patriots were believed to be readying a pursuit, but Godwin rejoined the Bucs shortly after the legal tampering period began. The second-leading pass catcher in franchise history continues to follow Evans. Tampa Bay, however, has the younger of its two receiver staples potentially in place to succeed Evans as the No. 1 option — as Evans is back in a contract year.

Although Godwin suffered a dislocated ankle seven games into last season, he did not see a chilled market. A report last week indicated the eight-year veteran could have approached $25MM per year. Godwin’s new deal will check in just south of that number, but he once again betters Evans’ contract.

Godwin, 28, had previously done so when he inked a three-year, $60MM deal as Tampa Bay’s franchise player. The Bucs tagged Godwin twice earlier this decade, and despite drafting Jalen McMillan in Round 3 last year, their commitment to the Evans-Godwin partnership persists.

When Godwin went down last season, he ranked second in the NFL in receiving yardage (576 yards). Godwin had made it back from the ACL and MCL tears sustained in December 2021, but he did not quite look himself during the 2022 and ’23 campaigns. Still, Godwin surpassed 1,000 yards in each season, helping Mayfield rebound in 2023. The Bucs will give Godwin a chance to rebound and will pay plenty for this opportunity.

This takes the top wide receiver option, per PFR’s Top 50 Free Agent list, off the market. Godwin being three years younger than Davante Adams made him the top prize this offseason, with Tee Higgins again off the market. Tampa Bay again proves it can retain talent despite imminent free agency. Godwin’s deal follows the re-signings of Shaquil Barrett, Carlton Davis and Jamel Dean after each had entered a legal tampering period unattached.

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